ntnut* 

Mitt 


s 


University  of  California  •  Berkeley 


SQUARE    BLOCKS 

And  Other  Sermons  and  Articles 


BY 
ELBERT  A.  ( SMITH 


Cover  by  Ruby  Short  McKim 


HERALD   PUBLISHING    HOUSE 

Independence,  Missouri 

1921 


CONTENTS 

BOOK  I— HALF   HOURS  WITH   CELEBRITIES 

Dominie  Tradition  - 11 

Father  Time  17 

Sir  Procrastination  20 

Madam  Rumor 25 

The  Eternal  Jew 33 

Blue  Pencil  Notes  ..  .  41 


BOOK  II— SQUARE  BLOCKS 

The  Valley  de  Grouch  46 

Square  Blocks  47 

Advance  the  Ball  52 

Wanted:  Big  Men 57 

Elbow  Room  66 

The  Coast  Patrol 72 

The  Desire  for  Twelve  O'Clock  at  Eleven 74 

The  Flight  of  the  Aeroplanes 77 

The  Dawn  at  Midnight 80 

Two  Remarkable  Wishes  Granted 84 

Good  Counsel 88 

The  Sin  of  Jealousy  93 

The  Deification  of  Humanity 96 

Marriage  and  the  Home 104 

Creation  in  Travail     113 

Blue  Pencil  Notes  ..  ...123 


BOOK  III— TO  THE  AVERAGE  YOUNG  MAN 

Zion  Builders 128 

The  Greatest  Battle  Ground 129 

Moral  Suicide ....131 

Vibrating  Heart  Strings  ..133 

Don't  Be  Pig  Headed 135 

A  Picture  of  the  World's  Work../. 137 

The  Man  Who  Never  Stops  and  Never  Turns 

Back.. 141 

A  Testimony  of  the  Clock 143 

Brain  Paths 145 

In  Line  of  Duty .148 

The  Tiger  and  the  Derelict .150 

The  Collector  of  Virtues .153 

The  Drifting  Boat 155 

A  Lesson  from  the  Shop  of  the  Old  Violin  Maker  157 

Have  You  Kept  Your  Head ...160 

Preserved  or  Pickled  162 

Putting  the  Halter  on  the  Camel 164 

Cocklebur  Farming  166 

The  Eternal  Triangle 168 

The  Finished  Product : 170 

Blue  Pencil  Notes  ..  ...181 


BOOK  IV— A  CUP  OF  COLD  WATER 

The  Dead  Nurse ...186 

A  Cup  of  Water  from  Flood  Tide 187 

A  Cup  and  a  Loaf  for  the  Master 190 

What  Is  a  Man  Worth...  ...196 


The  Lesson  of  the  Round  Table 201 

At.  the  Plow 205 

Fellowship  ..211 

Mother's  Place  in  Our  Lives 224 

Fathers'  Day  237 

Blue  Pencil  Notes  ..  -245 


BOOK  V— THE  WORD  THAT  BECAME  FLESH 

The  Transient  Guest  248 

The  Word  That  Became  Flesh ..249 

Not  by  Bread  Alone 262 

I  Have  Meat  That  Ye  Know  Not  Of 275 

Preaching  Jesus ....289 

Love  293 

The  Twenty-third  Psalm  302 

Music  the  Handmaiden  of  Religion . 311 

Blue  Pencil  Notes  ..  ...324 


BOOK  VI— THE  INSIDE  OF  THE  CUP 

Ocean  Evening  Hymn 330 

The  Inside  of  the  Cup 331 

The  Bargain  Counter  of  Life 354 

Two  Philosophies  of  Life 361 

Blue  Pencil  Notes 376 

Spirituality  and  Education 380 

Prejudice 384 

The  Trumpet  and  the  Pitcher...  ...387 


Who  Was  Right  About  Polygamy. 401 

Don't  Forget  the  Main  Issue 405 

Blue  Pencil  Notes 410 

Our  Influence  on  Doctrine 414 

Present  Tense  Religion  . 421 

The  Restoration 428 

The  Central  Figure  of  Christianity .....451 

Back  to  Jesus  and  His  Plans .453 

Our  Standard  of  Excellence  456 

Man's  Free  Agency  463 


BOOK  ONE 


Half  Hours  with  Celebrities 


HALF   HOURS   WITH   CELEBRITIES 

I.  DOMINIE  TRADITION 

r  I  ^HERE  had  been  an  evening  lecture  in  the  high 

school  building.  I  loitered  in  my  seat,  watching 

the  audience  disperse.  They  went  out  chatting 

gayly — all  the  students,  followed  by  the  pedagogues, 

until  only  the  janitor  was  left. 

I  yawned  and  prepared  to  go,  but  just  then  my 
attention  was  attracted  to  an  old  gentleman  who 
seemed  to  materialize  from  the  shadowy  corners  of 
the  room  and  came  down  the  aisle,  evidently  with 
the  intent  to  address  me. 

He  was  old  and  gray,  with  stooped  figure,  yet  with 
a  venerable  dignity  that  seemed  to  indicate  that 
for  many,  many  years  he  had  commanded  the  ut- 
most respect. 

He  chuckled  to  himself  as  he  approached,  and 
said,  "Did  you  hear  the  young  professor  run  on  to- 
night? These  young  pedagogues  amuse  me.  But  I 
should  not  laugh,  for  I  taught  them  all,  and  their 
fathers  before  them." 

Seeing  my  look  of  surprise,  he  went  on,  "I  am  one 
of  the  oldest  teachers  on  earth.  Just  as  soon  as  the 
sons  of  Adam  got  a  little  way  from  God,  I  established 
a  school,  and  every  man  from  that  day  to  this  has 
been  under  my  tutelage.  All  of  them  have  stood  at 

11 


12  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

my  desk,  though,  bless  you,  they  may  not  have 
known  it." 

"You  must  have  had  many  strange  experiences," 
I  ventured,  as  my  visitor  seemed  to  lapse  into  an 
abstracted,  reminiscent  mood. 

"Yes,"  he  answered.  "I  have  taught  many  strange 
people — dusky  Egyptians,  stern  Romans,  poetic 
Greeks,  visionary  Jews,  aspiring  Japanese,  obstinate 
Englishmen,  inquisitive  Yankees.  All  of  them  come 
under  the  rod  of  Dominie  Tradition." 

"I  suppose  you  have  had  some  trouble  in  matters 
of  discipline  ?"  I  inquired. 

"A  great  deal,"  he  answered,  carelessly.  "But  I 
have  many  methods  of  dealing  with  the  refractory. 
Many  a  great  man  have  I  ferruled  soundly.  I  made 
Galileo  get  down  on  his  knees  and  admit  that  the 
earth  was  flat  and  stationary." 

He  paused  to  frown  darkly,  and  added,  "But  the 
rascal  got  up  and  slipped  to  his  seat,  whispering, 
'And  yet  it  moves/ '  His  smile  returned,  however, 
and  he  went  on,  "But  that  is  all  right  now,  for  it 
has  become  traditional  that  the  earth  revolves,  and 
I  teach  it  myself  now. 

"I  have  had  trouble  with  religious  students  also. 
Most  of  the  reformers  in  religion,  as  in  politics  and 
science,  were  quite  unruly.  But  I  trounced  them  all 
severely  in  their  turn.  And  now  that  their  heresies 
are  become  orthodox  I  trounce  those  who  differ  from 
them.  Each  new  age  has  its  rebels  for  me  to  dis- 


Dominie  Tradition  13 

cipline.  They  eternally  ask,  Why?  No  wonder  I  look 
so  old.  Young  people  make  Tradition  look  old." 

This  frank  confession  irritated  me,  and  I  cried: 
"You  but  confirm  my  previous  opinion  of  you.  You 
are  the  enemy  of  progress  in  every  age.  It  was  you 
who  caused  the  Jewish  slaves  to  turn  against  Moses, 
their  deliverer." 

"Possibly  so,"  the  reverend  Dominie  admitted. 

"And  it  was  you  who  centuries  later  caused  the 
Jews  to  revere  Moses  and  reject  Jesus." 

"Very  likely,"  replied  my  new  friend,  swelling 
with  pride. 

"It  is  you,"  I  went  on,  heatedly,  "who  perpetuate 
every  falsehood.  It  is  you  who  maintain  the  tyranny 
of  the  dead  over  the  living.  It  is  you  who  slay  the 
prophets  in  every  generation  and  later  build  their 
tombs." 

"Not  so  fast,  my  son,"  interposed  the  Dominie, 
coolly.  "You  must  remember  also  that  I  carry  down 
from  father  to  son  every  truth  that  persists. 
Granted,  I  hate  new  things  and  love  old  things.  But 
still  credit  me  with  teaching  truth  as  impartially  as 
I  teach  error — if  it  is  only  old  enough  to  be  respect- 
able. It  was  I  who  preserved  the  Christian  doctrines 
before  Bibles  were  printed.  And  in  every  home 
where  ideals  of  honesty  and  temperance  and  industry 
are  upheld  I  make  them  traditional  and  carry  them 
down  from  generation  to  generation.  I  teach  what 
the  fathers  want  me  to  teach.  Don't  blame  me  for 
their  sins.  Blame  the  fathers." 


14  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

Somewhat  mollified,  I  quieted  down,  but  made 
bold  to  ask,  "But  why  do  you  not  teach  all  truth? 
Then  might  you  become  a  great  blessing  to  man, 
and  your  school  be  the  greatest  as  well  as  the  larg- 
est school  in  the  world." 

The  old  man  shrugged  his  shoulders  and  replied, 
"That  is  because  I  have  no  conscience  and  no  judg- 
ment. I  am  memory.  I  am  Tradition  only.  I  am 
a  teacher.  That  which  I  receive  from  the  fathers 
I  teach,  whether  of  good  or  of  bad.  If  you  are 
finnicky  about  ethics,  see  that  you  give  me  only 
truth  and  morality  for  your  children;  for  I  will 
teach  your  children's  children  after  you,  just  as  I 
taught  your  great-grandsires  before  you,  back  to 
Adam." 

"You  are  of  the  past,"  I  asserted.  "Paul  declared 
that  he  would  forget  things  past  and  press  forward 
towards  the  mark  of  the  prize  of  his  high  calling." 

"Paul!"  cried  the  old  gentleman.  "Yes;  Paul  was 
the  great  breaker  of  traditions.  He  turned  from 
circumcision  to  Christian  baptism;  from  the  school 
of  Gamaliel  to  the  feet  of  Jesus.  Don't  quote  Paul 
to  me." 

"But  Paul  was  a  dominant  man  in  his  age,"  I  per- 
sisted. "Nicodemus  is  all  but  forgotten.  But  Paul 
lives  forever.  I  will  follow  Paul's  advice." 

But  my  friend  laughed.  "Paul's  advice  is  tradi- 
tion—you are  learning,"  and  as  I  arose  to  go,  he 
caught  me  by  the  sleeve:  "Come  with  m;e!"  he  said. 

The  walls  of  the  school  building  seemed  to  fade 


Dominie  Tradition  15 

away  and  I  looked  with  surprise  into  a  dim  country 
towards  which  my  preceptor  was  attempting  to  drag 
me.  I  saw  dim  candlelights,  and  many  old  men, 
and  great  stacks  of  musty  volumes,  and  dusty 
shrines  and  idols  where  the  ancients  worshiped,  and 
old  cathedrals,  and  tombs,  and  priests  and  kings  in 
robes;  and  I  heard  incantations  and  mummery  of 
prayers,  and  many  voices  repeating  by  rote  the 
words  of  the  long-ago  dead. 

"It  is  the  past,"  I  murmured;  "the  land  of 
yesterday." 

"Yes,"  my  guide  answered,  "and  I  lead  you  to  it. 
Come  with  me.  Here  is  buried  the  wisdom  and  the 
folly  of  all  past  ages." 

But  I  resisted  the  inner  promptings  that  urged 
me  to  obey  my  ancient  monitor.  Turning  squarely 
from  him  I  looked  in  the  opposite  direction.  There 
I  saw  another  dim  country.  But  it  had  the  twi- 
light of  sunrise  rather  than  that  of  the  sunset. 

And  I  saw  many  lights,  like  morning  stars.  And 
there  were  domes  of  temples  yet  to  be  erected.  And 
I  heard  voices  singing  hymns,  and  saw  many 
preachers  of  righteousness  and  truth;  and  a  figure 
that  typified  my  ideal  of  faith.  And  there  were 
books  here,  too,  and  schools,  and  builders,  and  many 
young  men  and  women  marching'.  And  all  pressed 
forward.  For  this  was  the  land  of  the  future." 

I  wrenched  myself  from  the  grasp  of  my  ancient 
companion  and  said,  "I  will  not  go  with  you.  Nor 
will  I  accept  you  as  a  teacher.  I  will  consider  you 


16  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

only  as  a  servant.  Bring  me  what  truth  you  have 
from  the  past,  that  I  may  carry  it  with  me  into  the 
future.  But  bring  me  none  of  its  errors  and  follies. 
A  Christian  must  have  brain  and  conscience  and 
heart  as  well  as  memory.  And  he  must  walk  with 
Jesus,  who  ever  presses  forward  and  carries  with 
him  all  truth." 

Then  dimly  I  heard  the  sound  of  footsteps.  And 
I  awakened  to  find  the  janitor  of  the  school  building 
laughing  at  me.  "You  have  been  asleep,  sir,"  he 
said.  "All  the  others  have  gone  and  left  you,  and 
it  is  time  to  lock  the  building." 

I  arose  to  go,  feeling  rather  foolish;  but  even  so 
I  could  not  refrain  from  looking  about  to  see  if  I 
could  discover  anywhere  in  the  school  building  the 
reverend  form  of  Dominie  Tradition. 

I  am  sure  if  you  look  about  you,  in  time  you  will 
detect  this  venerable  preceptor  conducting  his 
classes,  in  the  church,  as  well  as  in  the  school, 
among  the  elders,  in  society,  everywhere.  If  you 
come  under  his  tutelage,  learn  to  discriminate,  for 
he  does  not;  and  invoke  the  guidance  of  a  higher 
instructor  who  is  pledged  to  guide  you  into  all  truth. 


HALF   HOURS   WITH   CELEBRITIES 

II.  FATHER  TIME 

As  I  SAT  in  my  study  one  winter  evening  I  fancied 
that  I  heard  a  knocking  at  the  door.  I  opened  the 
door,  but  saw  no  one.  A  fine,  sharp  sleet  drove 
against  my  face,  almost  cutting  the  skin,  and  a 
whirl  of  dead  leaves  crossed  the  porch,  borne  on  the 
wind. 

I  resumed  my  work,  only  to  be  called  to  the  door 
again  by  another  knock.  The  results  were  the  same 
as  before.  As  I  stood  in  the  doorway,  wondering 
what  it  was  that  had  deceived  me  into  supposing 
that  some  one  had  knocked,  I  noticed  the  dark  clouds 
scudding  across  the  face  of  the  Moon.  The  town 
bell  rang  the  curfew,  attracting  my  attention  to  the 
passing  of  Time.  Then  it  was  that  I  imagined  I 
perceived  some  one  standing  in  the  shadows,  close 
to  my  very  hand. 

He  was  old  and  bent,  and  the  wind  tossed  his  long 
gray  beard  and  snow-white  locks  to  and  fro,  and 
tugged  at  his  loose,  flowing  robe.  He  seemed  so 
much  a  part  of  the  elements  that  at  first  I  could 
with  difficulty  discern  him,  even  after  my  attention 
had  been  attracted  directly  to  him.  I  could  readily 
understand  how  he  might  pass  and  repass  and  knock 
at  many  doors  and  yet  remain  unnoticed. 

17 


18  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

In  answer  to  my  invitation,  he  entered,  leaning 
his  staff  against  my  desk.  In  one  hand  he  carried 
an  hourglass,  which  he  reversed  to  mark  the  passage 
of  time.  I  noticed  with  fascinated  awe  that  while 
the  flow  of  the  sand  grains  was  continuous  and  inex- 
orable, they  pulsated  constantly,  as  though  driven  by 
a  beating  heart.  I  thought,  Perhaps  the  saying  is 
true  that  Time  is  measured  by  human  heart  throbs, 
and  not  by  the  passage  of  suns  and  moons. 

The  old  gentleman  carried  with  him  a  long,  keen 
scythe,  the  snath  of  which  rested  across  his  arm  as 
he  stood  and  talked  to  me.  Noticing  my  close  and 
troubled  scrutiny,  he  said,  "You  have  heard  of  Old 
Father  Time  and  the  scythe  with  which  he  reaps 
the  ripened  grain  and  the  bending  flowers.  Well, 
this  is  the  famous  instrument.  My  harvest  field  is 
the  world.  I  reap  the  lives  of  men  and  women,  the 
young  and  the  old,  as  the  Lord  of  the  harvest  may 
direct." 

He  ran  his  hand  along  the  edge  of  his  blade,  as 
though  to  test  its  keenness,  but  when  I  essayed  to 
do  the  same  he  stayed  my  hand.  "Not  so  fast,  my 
son,"  he  cautioned;  "you  will  feel  its  edge  soon 
enough."  Then  he  continued,  "It  is  an  all-compelling 
instrument,  and  is  still  sharp  and  true,  though  there 
are  some  nicks  in  it.  I  have  had  to  use  it  on  some 
hard  old  customers;  yet  it  has  always  prevailed, 
soon  or  late. 

"Methuselah  evaded  me  a  long  time,  and  in  those 
days  I  delighted  to  spare  men,  because  they  walked 


Father  Time  19 

with  God  and  used  well  the  years  that  were  loaned 
them ;  yet  even  a  Methuselah  finally  reached  the  sun- 
set of  life.  Old  Ponce  de  Leon  tramped  through  the 
forests  of  the  New  World  in  search  of  the  fabled 
Fountain  of  Youth,  that  would  enable  him  to  defy 
my  behests;  but  all  the  time,  unseen,  I  followed  in 
his  footsteps,  and  cut  him  down  earlier  because  of 
his  folly  in  not  using  his  days  in  good  works,  instead 
of  vainly  trying  to  insure  himself  of  days  yet  un- 
sunned." 

As  the  old  man  prepared  to  leave,  filled  with  a 
reverence  for  the  priceless  value  of  Time,  I  seized 
him  by  the  robe  and  implored  him  to  wait. 

"I  cannot/'  he  replied.  "Time  and  tide  wait  for 
no  man.  The  tide  follows  the  moon,  and  I  follow  the 
behests  of  God,  and  must  go  on  and  on,  working  my 
changes  in  the  world  until  eternity  shall  dawn." 

"But  at  least  give  me  your  blessing,"  I  implored. 

"You  shall  have  my  blessing,"  he  answered,  "on 
the  one  condition  that  you  live  for  it,  and  it  will 
come  to  you  day  by  day  as  you  are  worthy  of  it; 
and  even  when  I  shall  have  an  end,  it  shall  continue 
with  you  throughout  eternity." 

So  my  guest  departed,  as  he  had  come,  merging 
into  the  storm  and  the  elements.  And  presently 
I  heard  the  bells  ringing  in  the  New  Year.  A  new 
year  for  you  and  me!  A  new  year  for  the  world! 
What  awful  work  of  death  and  destruction  may  it 
not  see?  A  new  year  for  the  church!  Will  it  be  a 
year  of  construction  and  salvation? 


HALF   HOURS   WITH   CELEBRITIES 

III.   SIR  PROCRASTINATION 

IT  WAS  afternoon.  I  had  just  seated  myself  at  the 
desk  to  prepare  an  editorial.  I  was  fingering  the 
keys  of  the  typewriter  tentatively  when  some  one 
touched  me  on  the  shoulder  and  a  voice  said,  "Do 
not  be  in  a  hurry.  Wait  a  little  while,  until  you  feel 
more  in  the  mood  for  work." 

Glancing  up  I  discovered  a  very  presentable  old 
gentleman  standing  at  my  elbow. 

"Whom  have  I  the  honor  to  address?"  I  asked. 

"I  am  Sir  Procrastination,"  he  replied. 

"And  your  business  with  me?" 

"Oh,  I  just  dropped  in,  as  usual,  to  have  a  little 
chat  and  pass  the  time  away.  But  in  this  strenuous 
age  I  find  that  I  must  be  brief.  People  used  to  give 
me  weeks  of  time — still  I  have  no  reason  to  complain, 
I  make  Duty  cool  his  heels  in  the  waiting  room  a 
good  many  hours  yet." 

"You  dropped  in  as  usual?"  I  queried.  "I  do  not 
recall  your  face." 

"Oh,  yes,"  he  replied,  "I  have  been  here  before,  at 
times  when  I  thought  that  you  were  not  too  busy  to 
listen  to  a  harmless  old  man.  You  simply  did  not 
recognize  me;  that  is  all.  Many  people  do  not.  My 
voice  is  much  like  that  of  Reason,  and  people  often 

20 


Sir  Procrastination  21 

mistake  one  for  the  other,  a  mistake  that  is  some- 
what to  my  advantage  at  times." 

"Pray  be  seated,"  I  urged,  somewhat  tardily. 

'Thanks;  in  just  a  moment,"  he  replied. 

There  seemed  no  occasion  for  him  to  say  "in  just 
a  moment,"  but  I  discovered  that  it  was  one  of  his 
peculiarities  to  meet  every  proposal  with  the  remark, 
"Wait  a  moment,"  or  "Presently,"  or  "To-morrow," 
with  the  exception  of  any  motion  to  defer  action, 
which  always  elicited  a  ready  second. 

After  my  visitor  had  seated  himself,  I  inquired 
further  of  him  concerning  his  business  with  me,  and 
obtained  this  reply: 

"I  merely  dropped  in  to  advise  you  to  defer  this 
task  until  a  more  opportune  time.  Never  do  to-day 
that  which  you  can  put  off  until  to-morrow.  We 
have  but  one  life  to  live.  Why  not  have  a  good  time 
while  we  are  at  it?  Throw  books  and  study  and 
work  and  worry  to  the  dogs!  Go  out  and  chase  a 
rainbow ;  or  if  it  suits  you  better,  sit  here  and  dream. 
I  can  tell  you  some  wonderful  things  that  you  will 
do  by  and  by." 

True  to  his  promise,  my  friend,  for  I  then  sup- 
posed him  to  be  such,  launched  out  in  a  glowing 
description  of  the  future.  He  painted  gorgeous  word 
pictures  of  the  wonderful  deeds  that  I  might  do  some 
day.  Under  the  hypnotic  spell  of  his  oratory  the 
present  was  forgotten;  it  seemed  of  no  value — the 
drudgery.  Ah,  the  beautiful,  shining  land  of  To- 
morrow ! 


22  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

Once  I  stirred  from  my  dream  to  ask  him  the 
time ;  but  he  only  frowned  angrily  and  declared  that 
he  never  carried  a  timepiece  and  abhorred  calendars. 
He  averred  that  we  had  talked  only  a  minute  and  that 
he  would  go  presently. 

In  answer  to  certain  inquiries  I  learned  that  my 
visitor  had  played  a  very  important  part  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  world.  I  then  discovered  that  he  had  jour- 
neyed with  the  Israelites  in  the  wilderness,  and  it 
was  largely  through  his  influence  that  they  were  kept 
out  of  the  Promised  Land  so  long.  He  had  watched 
them  later  as  they  labored  on  their  temple;  and 
standing  at  their  elbows,  he  had  advised  them  to 
defer  their  labors  until  their  homes  were  fully 
builded  and  furnished. 

He  boasted  with  considerable  pride  that  he  had 
been  closeted  in  his  day  with  such  rulers  as  Louis 
XVI,  Czar  Nicholas,  and  others  of  like  station,  and 
on  his  advice  they  had  deferred  granting  liberty  to 
the  people  until  that  ever-receding,  magical  by  and 
by. 

He  it  is  who  has  counseled  every  sinner  since  the 
world  began  to  postpone  repentance  one  more  day. 
He  stood  by  Felix  while  great  Paul  reasoned  of 
righteousness,  temperance,  and  judgment.  And 
when  Felix  trembled  under  his  kingly  vestments  and 
was  about  to  yield,  he  it  was  who  suggested  the 
avenue  of  escape :  "Go  thy  way  for  this  time ;  when 
I  have  a  more  convenient  season,  I  will  call  for  thee." 

I  asked  my  guest  if  he  did  not  feel  some  regrets 


Sir  Procrastination  23 

concerning  the  results  of  such  advice.  He  only  re- 
plied, "Oh,  I  don't  know.  I  have  never  given  it  a 
thought.  I  will  think  it  over  by  and  by. 

"Do  you  know,"  he  went  on,  "that  at  one  time  your 
God  said,  There  is  even  now  already  in  store  a  suf- 
ficiency, yea,  even  an  abundance  to  redeem  Zion, 
were  the  churches,  who  call  themselves  after  my 
name,  willing  to  hearken  to  my  voice'  ? 

"That  was  a  great  day  for  me.  Whose  voice  do 
you  suppose  they  ivere  hearkening  to?" 

"I  am  sure  I  do  not  know,"  I  replied. 

"To  mine,"  he  answered.  "People  who  listen  to 
me  are  deaf  to  God." 

"Then,"  I  answered,  "I  will  not  listen  to  you  any 
more.  And  anyway,  I  must  get  at  my  work  right 
noiv." 

My  visitor  sprang  to  his  feet  angrily.  "Do  not 
use  that  word  in  my  presence,"  he  commanded.  "If 
you  do  I  shall  depart  instantly." 

"What  word?" 

"That  insulting  word  noiv!" 

"Then  I  shall  repeat  it;  I  must  go  to  work  now!" 

At  that  my  uninvited  visitor  stumped  vehemently 
from  the  room. 

After  he  had  made  his  exit  I  was  about  to  take 
up  the  task  that  had  been  deferred,  but  just  then  I 
was  astonished  to  hear  the  clock  strike  the  hour  of 
seven,  and  immediately  my  wife  appeared  to  an- 
nounce the  evening  meal.  My  half  hour  with  this 
particular  visitor  had  consumed  the  entire  afternoon. 


24  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

"What!"  I  cried.  "I  have  lost  six  valuable  hours! 
Where  can  the  time  have  gone?" 

"Why,  didn't  you  know,"  she  said  sweetly,  "that 
Procrastination  is  the  thief  of  time  ?" 

I  am  compelled  to  believe  that  the  charge  is  true. 
I  had  harbored  the  greatest  thief  in  the  world.  I 
have  never  recovered  the  six  valuable  hours  that  the 
old  rascal  stole  from  me.  The  Saints  everywhere 
should  take  notice,  and  not  admit  him  to  their  homes 
or  listen  to  his  blandishments. 


HALF   HOURS   WITH   CELEBRITIES 

IV.  MADAM  RUMOR 

AT  A  certain  informal  social  affair,  the  precise 
nature  of  which  I  have  forgotten,  I  found  myself 
seated  by  the  side  of  a  lady  of  very  charming  per- 
sonality. Without  waiting  for  an  introduction,  we 
entered  into  conversation,  as  she  seemed  quite  eager 
to  talk. 

"You  do  not  recognize  me,"  she  said,  smilingly, 
"though  you  must  have  heard  a  great  deal  about  me 
in  the  past." 

"No,"  I  confessed,  "I  do  not,  although  your  voice 
has  a  familiar  sound,  and  I  have  the  impression  that 
I  have  seen  your  face  before.  But,  then,  I  never  can 
remember  names  and  faces." 

"You  need  not  apologize.  I  dress  very  differently 
at  different  times  and  get  myself  up  in  so  many 
guises  that  you  may  be  pardoned  for  not  recognizing 
me.  But  I  will  tell  you  who  I  am;  I  am  Madam 
Rumor." 

"What !"  I  cried.  "Not  the  Madam  Rumor  of  whom 
we  hear  so  much?" 

"The  very  same.  And  now  I  am  going  to  be  very 
confidential  with  you,  because  you  are  an  editor,  and 
they  are  among  my  best  friends.  I  help  them  get 
news;  thus  they  help  me  to  scatter  my  stories  far- 
ther than  I  otherwise  could." 

25 


26  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

"But,"  I  interposed,  weakly,  "I  edit  religious  peri- 
odicals." 

"That  need  not  worry  you,"  and  she  smiled 
sweetly;  "religious  people  are  among  my  very  best 
friends.  They  furnish  me  no  end  of  material.  And 
I  have  access  to  many  of  their  homes." 

"Yes,"  she  went  on,  "the  editors  are  a  great  help 
to  me.  Though  I  used  to  get  on  very  well  even  before 
the  press  was  invented." 

"Before  the  press  was  invented!  For  pity's  sake, 
how  old  are  you?" 

"That,"  she  answered,  "is  a  very  impertinent  ques- 
tion to  ask  a  lady.  Like  all  single  ladies,  I  am  not  old 
at  all.  I  am  always  young.  I  have  the  secret  of  per- 
petual charm.  Old  Mark  Antony  was  much  infatu- 
ated with  me  in  his  day ;  and  so  was  Belshazzar,  and 
Pontius  Pilate,  and  Cassar,  and  all  the  other  great 
ones,  from  A  to  Z.  And  the  humblest  scullion  for 
these  great  men  was  no  less  interested  in  me. 

"And  it  is  just  the  same  to-day,"  she  added  with 
delightful  candor;  "kings  and  presidents  listen  for 
my  latest  word.  Politicians  and  reporters  without 
number  watch  my  lips  and  faithfully  flash  my  words 
over  the  wires  and  speed  them  on  the  printed  page." 

"Indeed,"  I  gasped. 

"Yes,  and  to-morrow  I  contradict  that  which  I  said 
to-day,  and  then  they  flash  that  over  the  wires  and 
speed  it  on  the  printed  page." 

"But,"  I  inquired,  "if  you  are  of  such  importance, 
why  have  you  time  to  sit  and  talk  with  me?  Pres- 


Madam  Rumor  27 

ident  Wilson  or  the  Kaiser  Wilhelm  may  be  waiting 
for  you  right  now.  The  Associated  Press  may  be 
holding  the  wires  for  news  from  you." 

"Tut,  tut,"  she  rebuked;  "you  are  very  ignorant. 
Have  you  never  heard  that  'Rumor  has  a  thousand 
tongues'  ?  Well,  it  is  true ;  and  I  have  the  feminine 
ability  to  use  every  one  of  them  to  advantage.  I 
can  talk  to  you  and  to  King  George  and  to  the 
Associated  Press  and  to  the  servant  girl  next  door 
and  to  John  D.  Rockefeller  all  at  the  same  time." 

"My,"  she  went  on,  maliciously,  "I  know  a  lot  of 
women  who  would  like  to  be  able  to  talk  as  much 
as  I  can! 

"But  they  do  the  best  they  can  with  one  tongue," 
she  added,  charitably. 

"And,"  she  continued,  "I  can  be  in  a  thousand 
places  at  once.  I  beat  Peary  and  Cook  back  from 
the  Pole,  and  I  followed  Roosevelt  into  Africa.  I  can 
be  busy  right  here  in  Lamoni  between  prayer  serv- 
ices and  at  the  same  time  be  scaring  ungodly  Gen- 
tiles on  the  board  of  trade.  My,  you  men  are  fools. 
You  laugh  when  I  talk  about  the  women.  But  I  have 
made  life  one  long  nightmare  for  man  ever  since  the 
world  began.  I  have  started  more  business  panics 
and  wars  on  a  thin  air  basis  than  you  could  count 
in  a  week.  Shakespeare  recognized  my  power  to 
foment  war  and  muster  armies,  when  he  said  in 
King  Henry  the  Fourth: 

"  'And  who  but  Rumor,  who  but  only  I, 
Make  fearful  musters  and  prepared  defense?' 


28  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

"And  I  keep  civil  and  church  courts  busy  with 
litigation  started  on  the  same  basis.  I  have  made 
a  million  murders;  and  regiments  of  suicides  have 
accepted  my  stories  too  literally  and  acted  on  them 
too  hastily,  and  now  kick  themselves  through  To- 
phet." 

My  companion  seemed  lost  in  pleasant  retrospec- 
tion for  a  time.  But  presently  she  roused  herself 
again  and  continued: 

"But  while  it  is  very  entertaining  to  mingle  in 
large  affairs,  to  keep  statesmen  agog  and  set  king- 
doms by  the  ears  with  intrigues  and  rumors  of  wars, 
I  find  it  even  more  to  my  taste  to  mingle  with  people 
in  a  social  way,  to  make  free  with  neighbors  and 
help  to  spread  the  'small'  gossip  of  the  town. 

"You  know,  it  is  so  interesting  to  tell  everybody 
about  everybody — all  about  the  things  that  they  have 
done  and  the  things  that  they  ivould  do  if  they 
dared,  and  the  things  that  they  are  suspected  of 
doing." 

She  leaned  toward  me  confidentially,  and  contin- 
ued in  an  undertone,  "For  instance,  there  is  Mrs. 
Blank,  just  across  the  room  from  you.  She  is  a 
very  unhappy  woman.  You  didn't  know  it!  Why 
everybody  is  talking  about  it.  And  just  think,  she 
has  been  married  only  a  year!  And  her  husband 
was  so  attentive.  He  is  attentive  now,  but  not  to 
her.  You  are  the  twentieth  person  that  I  have  told 
about  it  to-night." 

As  Madam  Rumor  talked  on  and  on,  going  from 
one  name  to  another,  her  eyes  sparkled  with  en- 


Madam  Rumor  29 

thusiasm.  Her  voice  was  thrilling.  Her  whole  per- 
sonality was  magnetic.  The  little  stories  about  the 
foibles  and  sins  of  my  neighbors  became  entranc- 
ingly  interesting.  I  felt  impelled  to  hasten  away 
and  tell  them  to  others.  They  seemed  too  good  to 
be  kept  to  myself.  I  burned  to  confide  them  to  some 
one  else.  This  desire  seemed  to  increase  rather 
than  diminish  when  my  companion  charged  me  that 
•I  positively  must  tell  them  to  no  one. 

But  I  bethought  me  of  consequences,  and  so  said 
to  her,  "I  should  think  that  you  would  make  no  end 
of  trouble  telling  these  things  everywhere  you  go." 

"Trouble,"  she  laughed,  heartily.  "Why,  don't  you 
see?  I  grow  fat  on  trouble — literally  the  more 
trouble  there  is  in  a  community  the  more  Rumor 
there  is.  When  trouble  ends  in  this  old  world 
Madam  Rumor  will  die.  But  I  am  sure  that,  as  the 
insurance  companies  would  say,  I  am  a  pretty  'good 
risk'  yet.  No,  young  man,  you  will  not  live  to  pub- 
lish my  obituary." 

I  hastened  to  assure  her  that  we  were  not  reserv- 
ing space  in  the  Saints'  Herald  or  Autumn  Leaves 
on  any  such  remote  contingency,  though  I  have  since 
concluded  that  the  church  could  well  afford  to  pub- 
lish an  extended  "died  notice"  free  of  charge,  and 
erect  a  handsome  monument  over  the  grave  of  this 
lady,  if  we  could  have  assurance  that  she  were  indeed 
dead. 

From  this  rather  personal  topic,  our  talk  drifted 
by  degrees  to  the  church.  I  soon  discovered  that 


30  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

Madam  Rumor  knew  a  few  things  about  the  history 
of  the  church  and  fancied  that  she  knew  a  great 
many  more.  She  recounted  the  old  Solomon  Spal- 
ding  Romance  story ;  told  me  that  Joseph  iSmith  had 
thirty  wives;  and  that  the  Saints  in  Missouri  used 
to  steal  watermelons. 

"You  seem  to  have  these  stories  by  heart,"  I  ven- 
tured to  remark. 

"Oh,  yes,"  she  replied,  indifferently ;  "I  have  been 
telling  them  for  many  years.  I  used  to  keep  the 
Gentiles  in  Missouri  and  Illinois  all  stirred  up.  I 
suppose  that  I  had  as  much  to  do  as  anyone  in  bring- 
ing Joseph  Smith  to  his  death.  And  I  still  find  a 
great  many  preachers  and  others  who  like  to  listen 
to  these  old  stories.  But  I  prefer  something  newer, 
something  fresh,  that  I  can  get  even  the  church  peo- 
ple to  listen  to. 

"Now  do  you  know" — here  followed  a  marvelous 
tale  about  the  Presiding  Bishopric.  It  was  followed 
by  one  about  the  First  Presidency,  and  another  about 
the  Quorum  of  Twelve.  This  was  followed  by  others 
in  rapid  succession,  until  it  seemed  that  no  officer 
or  member  all  the  way  down  to  the  assistant  deacon 
of  Obscurity  Branch,  had  been  forgotten. 

A  wonderful  thing  about  these  stories  was  that 
certain  details  that  I  had  reason  to  suppose  were 
true  were  connected  with  others  of  a  very  damaging 
nature  in  such  a  way  as  to  leave  a  sickening  suspicion 
that  perhaps  something  was  wrong  after  all. 

But  right  here  I  made  bold  to  inquire,  "Are  the 


Madam  Rumor  31 

things  that  you  are  telling  me  true?  Are  they 
facts?" 

At  the  sound  of  the  words  truth  and  facts,  a 
startled  and  horrified  expression  came  over  the  face 
of  my  visitor. 

But  I  persisted  in  my  inquiry:  "Can  you  furnish 
any  proof  of  the  things  that  you  have  told  in  my 
presence?" 

And  now  occurred  the  most  singular  feature  of 
this  strange  interview.  At  the  word  proof,  the 
hitherto  apparently  solid  and  substantial  form  of 
my  visitor  began  to  grow  dim  and  misty,  and  ere 
the  sentence  was  finished  it  had  faded  entirely  away. 

Without  suspecting  it  at  the  time,  I  had  violated 
her  one  rule  of  intimacy.  Madam  Rumor  will  not 
remain  with  those  who  desire  only  facts.  To  demand 
proof  is  to  forfeit  her  society. 

A  peculiar  after-effect  followed  this  brief  half 
hour  with  the  great  personage  who  has  kept  the 
world  agog  for  six  thousand  years.  For  some  time 
afterward,  whenever  I  would  meet  any  of  those 
friends,  and  especially  those  church  members  of 
whom  she  had  spoken,  her  stories  about  them  would 
instantly  flash  across  my  memory.  It  was  impossible 
to  banish  them  entirely  from  my  mind.  They  created 
a  feeling  of  suspicion  and  destroyed  cordiality,  even 
though  I  had  learned  that  they  were  without  founda- 
tion. 

So  I  determined  that  the  price  was  too  great  to  pay 
for  the  privilege  of  associating  with  an  individual 
who  entertains  such  a  peculiar  aversion  to  the  words 


32  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

truth  and  proof.  It  seems  that  my  error  consisted 
in  not  using  those  words  at  the  very  beginning  of 
our  interview,  as  I  am  creditably  informed  that  in 
such  an  event  she  immediately  withdraws,  or  if  she 
remains  she  becomes  very  reserved  and  conservative 
in  her  statements. 


HALF   HOURS   WITH   CELEBRITIES 

V.  THE  ETERNAL  JEW 

I  HAD  been  reading  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures, 
and  had  at  last  wandered  into  the  New  Testament. 
The  light  burned  low.  I  ceased  to  read  and  lapsed 
into  reverie.  Many  mental  pictures  passed  before 
my  mind's  eye.  I  saw  a  tall,  gaunt  man,  with  gray 
beard  and  rugged  form,  standing  on  a  mount,  watch- 
ing a  bush  burn.  Strangely  enough,  the  bush  was 
not  consumed.  In  fire,  a  new  great  religion  was  be- 
ing born. 

But  the  scene  changed.  In  the  dusk  of  night,  by 
a  sleeping  camp  I  heard  pitchers  breaking,  and  trum- 
pets blowing,  while  the  lights  of  many  candles  blazed 
up.  There  was  a  rush  of  fighting  men  led  by  one 
tall  youth  with  clean,  strong  face,  who  swung  a  flash- 
ing sword,  and  I  heard  the  cry,  'The  sword  of  the 
Lord  and  of  Gideon!" 

Quickly  there  was  another  change,  and  I  saw 
sheep  feeding  by  quiet  waters  in  a  green  valley,  sur- 
rounded by  brown  hills.  A  shepherd  boy  sitting 
upon  a  rock  was  singing  a  song  which  began :  'The 
Lord  is  my  shepherd;  I  shall  not  want." 

Again,  without  account  of  time  or  distance,  I  saw 
a  terrible  struggling  mob  about  a  low  hill.  There 
were  brutal  faces  and  brutal  outcries,  and  fighting 
for  vantage  points.  And  presently  on  the  hilltop, 
darkly  silhouetted  against  the  sky,  stood  three 
crosses. 

2  33 


34  -Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

Once  more  the  scene  changed  and  I  saw  a  be- 
leagured  city.  I  saw  starving  Jewish  women  eating 
their  own  babies.  Desperate  Jewish  soldiery  fought 
in  the  breaches  of  broken  walls.  I  heard  the  earth 
shake  with  the  tread  of  Roman  soldiers.  Battering 
rams  thundered  at  the  gates.  There  were  dust  and 
blood  and  groans  and  a  falling  temple.  Then  I  saw 
the  hand  of  God  shaking  a  great  sieve  and  sifting 
corn  over  all  the  nations  of  the  earth.  And  each 
kernel  that  fell  sprang  up  a  Jew. 

Then  all  these  confused  pictures  passed  from  my 
mind  and  gradually  one  figure  took  definite  form  be- 
fore me.  He  was  a  tall  man,  with  thin,  dark,  keen 
face.  His  hair  was  reddish  brown.  His  nose  was 
typically  Jewish — the  very  nose  that  Judah  wore. 
He  was  closely  wrapped  in  a  cloak  that  gave  him  an 
air  of  mystery.  From  his  somber  eyes  looked  some- 
thing of  Russia,  something  of  America,  something 
of  the  Orient,  something  Western — and  yet  it  was 
altogether  Jewish,  the  Eternal  Jew,  without  home, 
without  nation,  ground  and  beaten,  hated  and  hunted 
and  feared,  sifted  among  the  nations,  yet  never  lost. 

When  this  mental  picture,  like  the  others,  had 
faded,  and  my  reverie  was  ended,  I  found  myself 
still  holding  the  old  Bible,  across  whose  printed 
pages  the  pageantry  of  the  past  had  marched.  Still 
under  the  spell  of  my  reverie,  I  wrote  the  following, 
heading  it  with  four  rather  splendid  verses  that  I 
have  read  somewhere,  but  whose  authorship  I  have 
forgotten. 


The  Eternal  Jew  35 

THE  JEW  YESTERDAY,  TO-DAY,  AND  TO-MORROW 

"Have  they  not  kingly  lineage,  have  they  not  pedigree? 
Are  they  not  wrapped  with  wonder,  like  the  darkness  of 

the  sea? 
They  come  out  of  the  night  of  years  with  Asia  in  their 

blood, 
Out  of  the  mystery  of  time  that  was  before  the  Flood. 

"They  saw  imperial  Egypt  shrink  and  join  the  ruined  lands; 
They  saw  the  sculptured,  scarlet  East  sink  under  the  gray 

sands ; 

They  saw  the  star  of  Hellas  rise  and  glimmer  into  dream; 
They  saw  the  wolf  of  Rome  draw  suck  beside  the  yellow 

stream, 
And  go  with  ravenous  eyes  ablaze  and  jaws  that  would  not 

spare, 
Snarling  across  the  Earth,  then,  toothless,   die  upon   his 

lair. 

"And  have  they  not  grief  enough,  this  people  shrunk  with 

chains? 

Must  there  be  more  Assyrias,  must  there  be  other  Spains? 
They  are  the  tribes  of  sorrow,  and  for  ages  have  been  fed 
On  brackish  desert-wells  of  hate  and  exile's  bitter  bre&d. 
They  sang  the  elegies  that  tell  the  grief  of  mortal  years; 
They  built  the  tombs  of  Pharaohs,  mixing  the  bricks  with 

tears; 

They  builded  up  fair  cities  with  no  threshold  of  their  own; 
They  gave  their  dust  to  Nineveh,  to  Babylon  their  moan. 

"After  tears  by  ruined  altars,  after  foils  in  alien  lands, 
After  wailings  by  strange  waters,  after  lifting  of  vain 

hands, 

After  cords  and  stripes  and  burdens,  after  ages  scorched 
with  fire, 


36  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

Shall  they  not  find  the  way  to  peace,  a  land  of  heart's 

desire? 
Shall  they  not  have  a  place  to  pray,  a  land  to  lay  the 

head? 
Shall  they  not  have  the  wild  bird's  nest,  the  fox's  frugal 

bed?" 


The  Jew  of  yesterday  is  a  noble  figure  in  the  world's 
history.  He  gives  us  the  basis  of  our  civil  law.  By 
him  our  religion  is  shaped.  From  his  writings  we 
glean  the  texts  upon  which  our  most  spiritual  ser- 
mons are  built ;  they  point  our  morals  and  adorn  our 
orations. 

There  is  no  land  to  which  a  Hebrew  wanderer 
has  not  penetrated.  There  is  no  law  that  a  Hebrew 
lawyer  has  not  helped  to  frame.  There  is  no  bright 
dream  that  a  Hebrew  poet  has  not  dreamed.  There 
is  no  vista  of  the  dim  future  which  has  not  opened 
to  the  eyes  of  a  Hebrew  prophet ;  to  his  quickened 
ear  came  the  greatest  revelation  of  Deity,  and  his 
hand  wrote  the  greatest  books  of  all  time. 

We  begin-  to  trace  their  history  as  it  takes  its  rise 
in  the  great  patriarchs,  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob, 
who,  strong  in  body,  mind,  and  spirit,  became  the 
fathers  and  founders  of  a  wonderful  people.  De- 
fective though  their  lives  were  in  some  respects,  still 
they  cherished  the  basic  principles  and  the  simple 
virtues  which  insure  existence  and  are  the  salt  of 
religion  and  politics. 

Next  appears  Moses,  the  great  emancipator  and 
lawgiver.  After  him  was  Joshua,  the  warrior.  The 


The  Eternal  Jew  37 

one  gave  freedom  to  an  oppressed  people,  and  in- 
spired, educated,  and  organized  them;  the  other 
drilled  them  and  infused  into  them  the  militant 
spirit,  so  that  they  went  as  conquerors  into  the 
promised  land.  There,  by  virtue  of  their  native 
qualities  and  the  divine  inspiration  received  from  on 
high,  they  became,  in  most  that  is  good,  the  teachers 
and  leaders  of  the  whole  world. 

Reflect  for  a  moment  upon  their  illustrious  names. 
Would  you  find  a  typical  pioneer?  He  is  found  in 
Abraham,  who  heard  the  voice  say,  "Get  thee  out  of 
thy  country,  and  from  thy  kindred,  and  from  thy 
father's  house,  unto  a  land  that  I  will  show  thee." 
So  he  went  and  staked  his  claim  in  Canaan  and 
founded  a  family  that  was  to  become  a  nation.  Do 
you  ask  for  a  typical  lawgiver?  Moses  is  his  name. 
Joshua  is  the  valiant  warrior ;  Daniel  the  inspired  re- 
former. David  is  still  the  preeminent  poet.  Solomon 
is  the  type  of  kingly  splendor  and  wisdom.  Jeremiah, 
Isaiah,  Ezekiel,  John — no  greater  prophets  have  been 
born  of  women. 

0 

But  what  a  change  since  the  day  when  the  King 
of  the  Jews  said,  "Behold,  your  house  is  left  unto 
you  desolate!"  What  a  change  since  Paul  wrote, 
"Seeing  ye  judge  yourselves  unworthy  of  everlast- 
ing life,  lo,  we  turn  to  the  Gentiles" ! 

The  picture  of  the  eternal  Jew  is  drawn  in  black 
and  white,  and  the  contrast  is  harsh  to  the  point  of 
offense.  Yesterday,  the  throne,  the  scepter,  the  altar, 


38  '  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

the  psaltery;  to-day,  the  sign  of  the  three  gilded 
balls.  Since  the  day  when  he  delivered  the  most 
distinguished  Jew  of  all  time  to  the  scourge,  the 
Jew  has  been  scourged  by  all  nations,  and  every  land 
has  pressed  upon  him  a  crown  of  thorns.  He  has 
been  crucified  outside  the  gates  of  many  cities,  and 
every  place  has  been  for  him  the  place  of  a  skull. 

Forbidden  to  hold  lands  in  most  countries,  he  has 
been  forced  into  commerce.  Hedged  about  with  re- 
strictions he  has  been  obliged  to  resort  to  mean  and 
petty  practices.  Overlooking  the  many  noble  and 
able  modern  Jews,  the  world  chooses,  when  it  looks 
for  a  typical  Jew,  to  observe  only  an  ignorant  Rus- 
sian exile,  a  crafty  dealer  in  secondhand  clothing,  a 
money  lender;  and  when  any  man  of  any  race  de- 
scends to  unspeakable  meanness  in  a  bargain  he  is 
simply  said  to  be  " jewing  his  neighbor  down/' 
Shakespeare  must  needs  choose  a  Jew  for  his  Shy- 
lock,  to  immortalize  the  stigma. 

The  race  that  once  caught  the  gleam  of  fire  in 
the  burning  bush  is  now  supposed  to  see  but  the 
glint  of  gold.  The  race  that  once  heard  the  voice  of 
God  at  Sinai  is  supposed  to  hear  but  the  clink  of 
silver.  The  race  that  once  thrilled  in  the  contempla- 
tion of  problems  of  eternity  is  now  supposed  to  think 
only  of  problems  of  gain.  But  this  is  an  injustice. 
Idealism  is  not  dead  in  the  heart  of  the  eternal  Jew 
— the  "Zionist"  movement  proves  that.  The  pas- 
sionate longing  to  return  to  Jerusalem,  the  hope  of  a 


The  Eternal  Jew  39 

restored  nation,  these  show  that  the  old  vision  is 
not  dead. 


Fortunately  there  is  a  brighter  side  to  the  picture, 
which  is  seen  as  we  look  at  the  future.  The  Jew  of 
to-morrow  will  be  as  the  Jew  of  yesterday.  God 
plainly  says  that  he  will  "set  his  hand  again  the 
second  time  to  gather  the  remnant  of  his  people." 

This  will  not  mean  simply  a  return  to  the  prom- 
ised land,  but  a  complete  recovery  of  their  former 
state  of  spiritual  and  temporal  greatness.  The  re- 
proach will  be  removed,  so  that  kings  will  be  proud 
to  be  their  "nursing  fathers,"  and  queens  be  honored 
to  be  called  their  "nursing  mothers." 

The  promises  of  God  concerning  them  have  always 
been  fulfilled.  He  declared  that  he  would  sift  them 
among  all  nations  "as  corn  is  sifted  in  a  sieve."  It 
was  done.  Yet  he  declared  that  "not  one  grain" 
should  be  lost.  It  is  true.  They  are  scattered  but 
not  lost.  So  far  as  the  Jew  proper  is  concerned,  he 
is  a  Jew  anywhere.  Bleached  by  the  Arctic  winds 
or  tanned  by  the  African  sun,  he  is  still  a  Jew.  He 
may  rise  to  the  highest  heights  of  education  and 
wealth,  or  sink  to  the  lowest  depths  of  ignorance 
and  poverty,  he  is  still  a  Jew.  Rothschild  or 
"sheeney,"  he  is  a  Jew. 

When  the  gospel  again  comes  to  them,  as  it  surely 
will  when  the  "times  of  the  Gentiles  are  fulfilled," 
the  same  Spirit  will  go  with  it  that  has  quickened  the 


40  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

intellect  of  every  people  to  whom  God  ever  sent  the 
gospel. 

If  the  Gentile  nations,  among  whom  the  gospel 
has  been  preached  so  long  and  whose  intelligences 
have  been  enlivened  by  inspiration,  shall  fail  to 
acknowledge  the  source  of  their  greatness,  the  sun 
will  set  upon  their  glory,  and  they  will  cease  to  lead 
as  inventors  and  rulers,  as  artists  and  writers,  and 
the  Jew  will  again  lead  and  teach. 

The  subject  is  of  vast  importance,  because  the  wel- 
fare of  the  whole  world  is  more  or  less  affected  by 
the  welfare  of  the  Jew.  Abraham  was  not  chosen 
for  his  own  benefit  alone,  but  that  "in  thee  and  in 
thy  seed"  all  the  nations  of  the  earth  might  be 
blessed. 

Looking  into  the  future  we  see  the  time  when  the 
Jew  shall  attain  to  his  supreme  greatness,  perhaps 
not  as  a  Jew,  but  rather  as  a  citizen  of  that  great 
nation  that  shall  be  made  up  of  men  from  every  race 
and  every  clime — the  great  general  assembly  of  the 
First-born. 


BLUE   PENCIL   NOTES 

WE  make  many  a  bitter  pill  worse  by  Fletcherizing 
it  before  we  swallow  it. 

About  the  deadest  thing  in  the  world  is  a  hobby 
that  has  been  ridden  to  death. 

The  gospel  grasps  the  humble  man  by  the  hand 
and  helps  him  up;  but  it  takes  the  haughty  man  by 
the  heel  and  pulls  him  down. 

They  do  say  that  Adam's  failure  was  largely  on 
account  of  Eve's  extravagance.  He  started  out  with 
a  fine  estate  and  a  good  position,  but  she  squandered 
it  all  on  apples  and  aprons.  But  there  were  no  neigh- 
bors to  worry  about  it ;  which  makes  it  quite  different 
from  any  similar  case  from  then  until  now. 

John  Smith,  finding  himself  in  debt  to  Pocahontas 
for  his  life,  paid  the  debt  with  his  heart.  Which 
was  quite  like  a  man.  Thereupon  she  left  all  else 
that  she  loved  and  followed  him  to  England,  where 
she  quickly  died  in  a  strange  climate  among  strange 
people.  Finding  herself  in  debt  to  John  Smith  for 
his  heart,  she  paid  the  debt  with  her  life.  Which 
was  quite  like  a  woman. 

Mrs.  Eddy,  mother  of  Christian  Science,  argues 
that  poisons  kill  only  because  everybody  thinks  that 

41 


42  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

poison  kills.  The  individual  is  the  victim  of  uni- 
versal mental  suggestion.  This  is  "demonstrated," 
no  doubt,  by  potato  bugs,  which  are  very  susceptible 
to  mental  suggestion  and  die  quickly  after  eating 
Paris  green. 

In  the  foregoing  paragraph  we  say  that  potato 
bugs  die,  which  of  course  is  merely  a  "term  of  con- 
venience" to  cover  their  "mortal  error."  The  farmer 
thinks  that  they  are  dead,  and  the  bugs  think  that 
they  are  dead — which  is  another  convenience. 

Joseph  Luff  used  to  say  that  there  are  many  will- 
ing to  be  the  anvil  and  more  who  are  willing  to  be 
the  hammer,  but  oh,  how  few  there  are  who  are 
willing  to  be  the  iron  between  the  hammer  and  the 
anvil ! 

We  may  boast  that  we  never  make  the  same  mis- 
take twice.  If  so,  we  have  an  astonishing  variety  of 
new  ones.  We  are  versatile.  Our  own  experiences 
in  this  line  should  make  us  more  charitable  towards 
others.  Let  us  remember  that  Jesus  left  the  courts 
of  glory,  where  no  mistakes  ever  occur,  and  came 
down  to  consort  with  men  who  are  like  us.  He  loved 
them  in  spite  of  their  mistakes.  Can  we  do  less? 
If  we  wait  to  love  until  we  find  men  who  never  make 
mistakes  we  will  go  to  our  tombs  unloving  and  un- 
loved— and  the  sooner  the  better.  But  after  all  is 
said  on  the  subject  of  mistakes,  it  remains  to  add, 
that  the  most  fatal  and  fatuous  mistake  of  all  is 


Blue  Pencil  Notes 


made  by  the  man  who  refuses  to  recognize  and  ad- 
mit that  he  makes  mistakes. 

A  wise  old  owl,  upon  being  told  that  he  was  big- 
ger than  the  eagle,  merely  blinked  his  eyes.  In  -his 
mind  he  hooted  at  the  idea.  But  he  was  too  polite 
to  say  anything  aloud,  so  he  kept  on  catching  mice 
and  thinking  his  own  thoughts.  But  a  foolish  sap- 
sucker,  receiving  the  same  flattery,  immediately  flew 
up  in  the  air  and  imagined  that  he  filled  the  whole 
heavens  with  the  spread  of  his  wings. 

A  modest  man  receiving  great  praise  retains  his 
own  opinion  of  himself.  But  a  vain  man  immediately 
swells  up  to  fill  the  new  specifications. 

When  an  otherwise  excellent  brother  becomes  in- 
flated and  imagines  that  he  is  the  very  last  word  in 
the  vocabulary,  ordinary  men  are  greatly  tempted 
to  puncture  him.  But  what  is  our  duty  in  the  case? 
It  is  a  problem.  Does  it  call  for  Christian  forbear- 
ance or  "direct  action"?  What  did  Jesus  do  when 
the  brethren  got  the  bighead?  Strangely  enough, 
he  began  at  the  other  extremity.  He  got  down  on 
his  knees  and  washed  their  feet.  And  while  he  did 
it  the  men  got  smaller  and  smaller  and  smaller,  until 
they  were  quite  normal  again.  But  Jesus  was  really 
a  big  man.  If  we  should  try  that  we  might  become 
very  proud  of  our  humility. 

0  beautiful  star,  that  guided  afar  over  valley  and 


44  Half  Hours  With  Celebrities 

height,  where  are  your  rays  to-night?  They  are 
blotted  out  in  the  dust  and  rout  and  smoke  of  the 
fight.  They  shine  not  to-night.  0  beautiful  song, 
full-toned  and  strong  with  angels'  delight,  where 
are  your  strains  to-night?  They  are  drowned  by  the 
crash  of  guns  and  the  flash  of  shells  as  they  break. 
The  sad  hearts  that  ache  in  this  dark  night  of  pain 
forbid  that  glad  strain.  The  angels  sit  dumb  in  their 
heavenly  home.  (December,  1917.) 

Paul,  possibly  the  greatest  missionary  that  ever 
lived,  was  a  great  student  as  well  as  dreamer.  He 
could  quote  the  Greek  poets  or  mend  a  tent.  He 
walked  with  composure  and  dignity  up  the  slopes  of 
Mars  Hill  and  with  equal  ease  took  charge  of  a  ship 
at  sea  in  a  storm  when  the  crew  was  in  a  blue  funk. 
Joseph's  brethren  said,  "Behold  this  dreamer  com- 
eth."  Later  he  administered  the  affairs  of  Egypt. 
The  truth  of  course  is  that  these  men  were  prac- 
tical men — plus  the  dream,  the  study,  and  the  vi- 
sion. And  that  is  the  kind  of  men  we  need  in  re- 
deeming Zion. 

The  man  who  does  a  bit  of  constructive  work  will 
soon  be  told  four  things:  First,  it  should  not  have 
been  done  at  all.  Second,  it  should  not  have  been 
done  in  that  way.  Third,  it  should  not  have  been 
done  at  that  time.  Fourth,  some  one  else  should 
have  done  it. 


BOOK  TWO 


Square  Blocks 


THE  VALLEY  DE   GROUCH 


Spend  not  all  your  time  in  the  Valley  de  Grouch — 
Come  stand  on  the  hill  where  there's  plenty  of  room. 

Come  out  of  the  jungle  and  sit  in  the  sun, 
And  watch  the  sweet  roses  of  charity  bloom. 

Spend  not  your  time  in  the  culture  of  lemons, 
But  see  that  your  olive  trees  bear  their  increase; 

And  carry  their  branches  along  on  the  road 

That  was  traveled  one  time  by  the  Prince  of  Peace. 

And  soak  not  the  sponge  in  wormwood  and  gall 
That  you  hold  to  the  lips  of  your  fellow  man; 

But  give  him  instead  a  cup  of  cold  water, 

Thus  squaring  your  life  with  the  Nazarene"s  plan. 

Spend  not  all  your  days  in  the  Valley  de  Grouch; 

And  arm  not  your  soul  with  the  brier  and  thorn. 
Come  stand  on  the  mount  with  the  Great  Friend  of  Man 

Whose  life  was  all  sweet  like  the  breath  of  the  morn. 

E.  A.  S. 


SQUARE  BLOCKS 

I  MAY  have  in  my  mind  a  very  splendid  picture 
of  a  rose.  But  if  I  am  obliged  to  attempt  to 
outline  and  portray  that  rose  with  the  aid  only 
of  square  wooden  blocks,  I  convey  to  your  mind  a 
very  inadequate  idea  of  that  which  is  in  my  mind. 

That  is  the  trouble  with  words.  They  are  square 
blocks  that  we  have  invented  to  express  our 
thoughts.  They  are  very  imperfect  and  we  use  them 
very  imperfectly — all  of  which  accounts  for  a  great 
deal  of  the  misunderstanding  in  the  church  as  well 
as  in  the  world. 

It  is  true  that  some  men  are  more  gifted  than 
others.  With  them  language  is  both  vivid  and  plas- 
tic, taking  always  the  form  of  their  thought — but 
most  of  us  work  with  square  blocks. 

Fortunately,  however,  words  are  more  important 
in  logic  than  in  life — if  you  can  get  what  is  meant 
by  that.  Men  of  scholastic  mind  are  always  very 
much  interested  in  formulating  exact  definitions 
for  every  proposition — or  rather  in  attempting  to 
formulate  exact  definitions.  That  is  proper,  too,  for 
definitions  must  accompany  every  attempt  to  ana- 
lyze. But  we  repeat,  words  are  more  important  to 
logic  than  to  life. 

The  spirit  of  man,  as  well  as  the  Spirit  of  God, 
has  a  way  of  speaking  over,  under,  between  words — 

47 


48  Square  Blocks 

however  you  wish  to  express  the  thought.    We  are 
not  altogether  limited  to  square  blocks. 

My  friend  stands  at  the  grave  side  of  his  little 
child.  I  come  to  him,  filled  with  sympathy,  but  quite 
unable  to  clothe  my  feelings  in  words.  All  the  fine 
big  words  have  vanished  away.  Only  a  few  common 
ones  are  at  hand  and  they  do  not  seem  to  mean 
much,  under  the  circumstances.  But  something  does 
speak  through  my  halting  phrases  and  reach  his 
heart,  so  that  he  is  comforted  and  understands.  Lips 
say  little  to  ear;  but  heart  speaks  to  heart  so  that 
the  idea  clumsily  portrayed  by  my  square  blocks  is 
expressed  and  comprehended. 

There  is  something  after  all  to  the  almost  inar- 
ticulate appeal  with  which  we  often  end  an  effort 
to  explain,  "Well,  you  know  what  I  mean,  anyway." 

History  is  full  of  instances  where  speech  has  pro- 
duced astounding  results  quite  out  of  proportion  to 
anything  that  was  put  into  words.  Back  of  every 
impassioned*  utterance  is  a  great  reservoir  of  human 
emotion  that  bursts  over  the  dam  and  gets  away 
without  being  recorded.  "Liberty,  equality,  fra- 
ternity," that  was  all  the  French  Revolution  put  into 
words.  But  those  three  square  blocks  of  speech 
were  accompanied  by  torrents  of  emotion  and  cata- 
clysmic action. 

Analyze  Peter's  speech  at  Pentecost.  Is  there  any- 
thing in  it,  so  far  as  we  have  it  in  words,  to  account 
for  the  astonishing  effect  produced  at  the  time? 
But  Peter  was  endowed  with  power  from  on  high, 


Square  Blocks  49 

as  was  promised.  The  spirit  of  Peter  spoke  much 
more  than  the  lips  of  Peter  could  utter.  The  Spirit 
of  God  rode  through  and  over  and  under  his  speech. 
It  is  well  said  that  his  hearers  were  "pricked  in  their 
hearts/'  There  may  have  been  logic  there — but  it 
was  logic  plus.  There  was  something  besides  Peter's 
very  hard  and  very  square  utterances. 

So,  after  all,  there  must  be  a  profound  philosophy 
in  the  injunction  that  we  shall  not  attempt  to  preach 
without  the  Spirit.  Otherwise  we  may  merely  at- 
tempt to  portray  a  splendid  picture  with  the  aid 
only  of  a  few  square  blocks  (some  speakers  have 
a  bigger  collection  than  others)  and  the  result  will 
be  pitiful  when  it  is  not  ridiculous,  and  so  terribly, 
terribly  monotonous.  Without  that 'peculiar  unction 
from  on  high  that  gave  wings  to  his  thoughts, 
Peter's  Pentecostal  sermon  might  have  put  the  whole 
audience  to  sleep.  We  suspect  that  people  did  go  to 
sleep  sometimes  when  Peter  preached,  but  not  at 
Pentecost. 

A  study  of  homiletics,  rhetoric,  logic,  public  speak- 
ing, may  help  one  a  great  deal  in  the  arrangement 
of  his  ideas  in  an  orderly  and  logical  manner,  and 
in  the  selection  and  delivery  of  his  sentences.  But 
if  that  is  all  he  has,  men  very  quickly  discover  that 
he  is  merely  playing  in  the  pulpit  with  building 
blocks.  They  prefer  to  play  with  their  own  blocks  on 
the  street  corner  or  in  the  club.  After  Jesus  had 
taught  the  apostles  for  years,  and  when  the  mission 
field  lay  before  them  white  for  the  harvest,  as  he 


50  Square  Blocks 

himself  had  declared,  he  yet  said  to  them,  "Wait, 
wait,  wait." 

Wait  for  what?  Did  they  not  understand  the  gos- 
pel message?  Did  they  not  have  words — words- 
plenty  of  words,  good  words?  Peter  never  lacked 
for  words.  The  harvest  was  white.  The  laborers 
were  few.  Yet  Jesus  said,  "Wait."  Wait  for  what  ? 
"Wait  till  you  are  endowed  with  power  from  on 
high." 

A  certain  well-known  elder  who  left  the  church 
years  ago  felt  that  he  could  go  on  preaching  with- 
out any  trouble.  He  had  been  very  popular  as  a 
preacher.  He  said,  "Why,  of  course  I  can  go  on 
preaching.  All  there  is  to  preaching  is  to  make  up 
one's  mind  what  to  say  and  then  get  up  in  the  pulpit 
and  say  it."  Very  simple.  Yet  as  a  matter  of  fact 
he  had  lost  his  power  to  preach  and  never  regained 
it.  The  change  was  patent  even  to  nonmembers. 

Mark  Twain  once  made  a  minister  very  angry  of 
a  Sunday  when  he  said,  "I  have  a  book  at  home  in 
my  library  which  contains  every  word  of  your  ser- 
mon." Mark  referred  to  the  dictionary.  A  pocket 
dictionary  contains  all  the  words  that  a  man  will 
need  for  a  very  good  sermon — at  least  it  has  all  that 
there  are  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount.  The  In- 
structor has  in  small  compass  classified  texts  enough 
to  supply  scripture  for  a  great  many  sermons  on  a 
great  many  subjects.  Pattison  tells  all  about  "The 
making  of  the  sermon."  Well,  what  more  does  a 
man  need  ?  There  are  the  words,  there  are  the  texts, 
there  are  the  rules. 


Square  Blocks  51 

But  every  time  a  man  goes  into  the  pulpit,  if  he 
is  a  man  of  sense  and  modesty,  he  is  likely  to  be 
appalled  by  the  thought,  How  am  I  to  portray 
Christ  with  the  square  blocks  at  my  disposal  ?  The 
words  come  to  him  also,  "Wait — wait — until  you  are 
endowed  with  power  from  on  high."  Jesus  said, 
"My  words  they  are  spirit  and  they  are  life."  And 
the  promise  was  given  of  old,  "I  will  make  my  words 
in  thy  mouth  fire." 


ADVANCE    THE    BALL 

IN  A  well-organized  football  eleven  every  move  of 
every  player  is  designed  to  advance  the  ball. 
Every  player  supports  the  team.  Every  player 
supports  every  other  player.  All  try  to  make  the 
goal.  One  man  may  have  the  honor  to  carry  the 
ball  forward  for  a  gain — but  all  others  help  him  to 
make  the  play.  Some  may  run  before  or  beside  him 
for  "interference";  but  they  do  not  interfere  with 
him;  they  protect  him  and  interfere  with  his  assail- 
ants. All  obey  the  signals.  There  is  discipline  and 
order. 

Suppose  that  in  a  certain  team,  after  the  line-up 
has  been  determined  for  the  game,  after  the  whistle 
has  blown  and  action  is  on,  two  or  more  players  de- 
cide to  oppose  each  other.  Or  suppose  they  decide 
to  oppose  the  captain  or  quarter  back,  to  "rough" 
and  "foul"  their  own  fellows  in  the  scrimmage  to 
defy  the  orders,  and  ball  up  the  signals.  What  will 
happen  ?  The  opposition  will  go  right  through  them 
and  around  them  and  over  them. 

What  would  you  think  of  such  a  team?  Reverse 
the  question.  What  do  you  suppose  a  good  football 
team  would  think  of  some  of  the  things  we  do?  If 
two  players  on  an  eleven  should  decide  to  fight  each 
other,  that  would  leave  nine  to  meet  the  enemy.  If 
four  should  become  thus  involved,  seven  would  be 
left.  If  five  should  decide  to  oppose  the  remaining 

52 


Advance  the  Ball  53 

six,  one  would  be  left  to  oppose  the  enemy.  The 
same  principle  holds  good  in  a  branch,  in  a  stake,  or 
in  the  general  church. 

Here  is  an  incident  not  so  unusual  that  one  may 
say  it  never  happened:  a  certain  branch,  or  district, 
or  stake,  has  its  regular  business  meeting  or  con- 
ference. Policies  are  discussed.  Officers  are  elected, 
or  sustained,  as  the  case  may  be.  The  line-up  for 
the  team  is  decided  upon.  But  almost  immediately 
when  the  work  is  begun,  some  of  the  officers  get  at 
outs  and  spend  the  rest  of  the  time  trying  to  de- 
feat one  another.  Or  perhaps  they  get  at  outs  with 
the  branch  president,  or  the  district  or  stake  presi- 
dent, as  the  case  may  be,  and  spend  the  rest  of  the 
year  trying  to  make  him  unhappy  and  to  balk  his 
plans.  Or  possibly  those  on  the  side  lines  get  upon 
the  field  and  endeavor  to  kick  the  ball  about.  What 
would  you  think  of  such  a  branch?  Obviously, 
Methuselah  would  not  live  long  enough  to  see  it  make 
even  a  ten  yard  gain.  It  is  impossible  to  advance 
the  ball.  While  the  struggle  goes  on,  few  are  left  to 
meet  the  enemy — and  he  goes  right  through  our  line. 

Is  the  picture  overdrawn?  Since  this  editorial 
was  begun  a  letter  came  to  the  desk  of  the  Presi- 
dency from  a  brother  in  a  rather  large  and  im- 
portant branch.  He  says: 

"We  have  a  wonderful  opportunity  here  to  build 
up  an  organization  that  will  be  a  power  for  good  in 
the  church,  but  every  effort  is  being  made  to  frus- 
trate all  progressive  movements;  in  fact,  the  past 


54  Square  Blocks 

year  as  I  view  it  has  been  devoted  to  defending  the 
policies  of  the  church  against  those  who  insist  that 
it  is  being  led  to  destruction." 

Why  not  line  up  and  play  the  game?  Let  our  ob- 
jections be  registered  at  the  proper  time  by  voice 
and  vote  in  conference  and  business  meeting,  and  at 
elections.  But  when  the  majority  has  decided  the 
line-up  for  a  season,  let  us  get  busy  and  advance  the 
ball.  Let  us  heed  legitimate  leadership  and  disci- 
pline and  direction.  Otherwise  we  can  never,  never 
win  out  at  the  goal. 

Some  one  may  say:  "Oh,  that  is  Brighamism! 
You  want  us  to  obey  counsel,  to  follow  the  file  leader. 
That  is  Brighamism !"  It  is  not.  The  charge  has  so 
little  foundation  that  it  is  not  even  worth  while  to 
get  angry  about  it.  Here  is  one  vital  difference  be- 
tween "Brighamism"  and  our  philosophy  and  pro- 
cedure. Brighamism  gives  no  opportunity  for  free 
speech  at  the  business  sessions  and  conferences,  the 
very  place  where  the  people  are  to  discuss  matters 
and  determine  common  consent  by  the  ballot. 

The  man  who  started  any  sort  of  opposition  in 
Brigham's  day,  and  for  a  long  time  after,  was  speed- 
ily shown  to  the  door  by  an  escort  of  very  efficient 
ushers.  He  found  himself  immediately  in  the  great 
and  glorious  out-of-doors.  The  conference  went  on 
without  him — and  a  negative  vote  was  not  taken. 
Often  the  recalcitrant  member  found  himself  dis- 
fellowshiped  speedily,  if  indeed  he  escaped  an  ex- 
position of  the  principle  of  "blood  atonement." 


Advance  the  Ball  55 

Have  we  anything  like  that?  You  know  we  have 
not.  Free  speech  has  been  the  rule  in  our  conferences 
— very  free  indeed.  And  very  often  those  who  have 
stood  in  opposition  to  the  administration  have  been 
given  positions  of  great  trust  and  responsibility  as 
well  as  honor.  That  has  been  done  to  this  very  day. 

The  late  General  Conference  [1919]  was  monu- 
mental evidence  that  the  right  of  free  speech  remains 
unabridged.  Everyone  said  about  what  he  pleased. 
Debate  continued  until  the  people  closed  it  them- 
selves. In  every  decision  made  by  the  chairman  on  a 
question  wherein  there  was  even  a  shadow  of  doubt, 
free  speech  was  given  the  benefit  of  the  doubt.  You 
know  that  to  be  a  fact. 

If  this  church  errs  in  anything  it  errs  in  too  great 
leniency,  and  men  are  allowed  to  go  on  and  on  until 
they  ruin  themselves  and  others.  If  you  do  not  be- 
lieve that,  get  the  proper  longitude  and  latitude  and 
draw  a  straight  line  across  the  map  toward  Toronto. 
Where  an  attempt  has  been  made  to  curb  one  man 
who  will  not  play  the  game  according  to  the  divine 
rules,  a  dozen  have  been  permitted  to  go  scot  free, 
because  to  thejast  extremity  we  have  thought  to 
save  them. 

But  returning  to  our  theme:  free  speech  has  its 
time  and  place.  And  there  is  a  time  for  work — 
orderly,  concentrated,  disciplined  work.  When  the 
debate  is  over,  in  branch,  district,  or  stake,  or  gen- 
eral church,  the  votes  cast  and  counted,  the  line-up 
for  the  period  determined,  we  ought  to  get  busy  and 


56  Square  Blocks 

play  the  game,  giving  mutual  support.  Let  us  ad- 
vance the  ball. 

Let  us  not  deceive  ourselves.  We  are  not  out  for 
a  summer  picnic  or  a  little  joint  debate  among  our- 
selves. The  opposition  is  lined  up.  And  the  oppo- 
sition is  bent  upon  only  one  thing:  the  entire  de- 
struction of  the  church,  root  and  branch. 

Have  you  noted  the  character  of  the  books  ap- 
pearing against  us  ?  Have  you  observed  the  work  of 
the  lecturers  who  are  covering  various  parts  of  the 
country?  It  is  reported  that  two  hundred  and 
eighty-eight  thousand  congregations  of  various  de- 
nominations have  banded  themselves  in  an  alliance 
to  destroy  "Mormonism,"  as  they  term  it.  And  their 
hardest  attack  many  times  is  upon  the  Reorganized 
Church — not  upon  the  Utah  Mormons.  Some  of 
them,  at  least,  do  not  hate  polygamy  as  bad  as  they 
have  claimed  to  do,  or  they  would  not  pass  by  Utah 
Mormonism  to  attack  a  moral  and  religious  people 
whose  record  is  clean  and  honorable.  But  so  it  is. 
The  issue  is  drawn.  The  battle  is  on. 

Have  we  time  for  bickerings?  The  opposition 
does  not  wait  for  us  to  adjust  our  little  differences. 
Our  opponents  have  no  excessive!?"  reverential  re- 
gard for  fair  play.  They  are  not  lopsided  with  over- 
developed consciences.  They  mean  business.  They 
are  smashing  at  our  center  and  driving  at  the  ends 
of  our  line.  Perhaps  we  had  better  get  together  and 
advance  the  ball. 


WANTED:    BIG   MEN 

Sermon  at  Lament,  Iowa,  January  27,  1916. 

Till  we  all  come  in  the  unity  of  the  faith,  and  of  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  Son  of  God,  unto  a  perfect  man,  unto  the  measure 
of  the  stature  of  the  fullness  of  Christ. — Ephesians  4-'  15. 

But  speaking  the  truth  in  love,  may  grow  up  into  him  in 
all  things,  which  is  the  head,  even  Christ. — Ephesians  4:15. 

But  grow  in  grace,  and  in  the  knowledge  of  our  Lord  and 
Savior  Jesus  Christ.  To  him  be  glory  both  now  and  forever. 
Amen. — 2  Peter  3:18. 

"^  TOU  will  notice  that  in  the  texts  I  have  selected, 

|      the  subject  of  growth  is  mentioned,  and  the 

idea  is  held  forth  that  we  are  to  grow  until 

we  become  like  Christ;  that  we  are  to  be  measured 

by  him. 

FEEDING    A    GRUDGE    HEART    TISSUE 

We  want  men  and  women  who  are  too  big  to  hold 
a  grudge  against  one  another.  A  big  spirit  never 
holds  a  grudge,  and  the  spirit  that  holds  a  grudge 
can  never  become  large.  It  takes  too  much  spiritual 
sustenance  to  keep  a  grudge  alive — the  man  is 
starved  to  death. 

It  costs  more  to  keep  a  grudge  than  it  does  to  keep 
a  horse  or  an  automobile.  A  horse  eats  hay,  and  an 
automobile  burns  up  gasoline ;  but  a  grudge  eats  the 
heart  of  the  man  himself,  and  he  will  burn  in  hell 
eventually  if  he  does  not  cast  it  out;  because  Jesus 
said  definitely,  "If  ye  forgive  not  men  their  tres- 

57 


58  Square  Blocks 

passes,  neither  will  your  Father  forgive  your  tres- 
passes." 

You  perhaps  have  seen  men  who  have  nursed  a 
grudge  for  long,  long  years.  It  made  them  suffer, 
and  it  has  made  others  suffer.  They  are  never  satis- 
fied until  they  "get  even"  with  some  one;  and  after 
they  have  gotten  even  they  feel  meaner  than  they 
did  before.  A  grudge  makes  you  feel  bad  all  the 
time  until  you  gratify  it,  and  then  you  feel  worse 
than  you  did  before. 

ASSETS  AND  LIABILITIES 

We  want  men  and  women  who  are  so  big  that  they 
will  not  do  a  mean  or  contemptible  trick.  We  want 
men  and  women  who  are  so  big  that  they  will  not 
betray  a  friend.  It  is  a  mark  of  nobility  and  great- 
ness of  character  to  be  true  to  a  friend,  true  to  the 
cause,  true  to  the  church,  true  to  our  convictions,  no 
matter  under  what  conditions  we  may  find  ourselves. 
If  we  have  that  kind  of  men  and  women  in  the 
church  they  are  the  most  valuable  asset  we  have. 

The  bishop  may  make  his  report  annually  to  the 
conference.  He  may  have  a  list  of  figures  headed 
"Assets  of  the  church,"  showing  money  in  hand,  and 
notes,  church  buildings,  etc.;  but  I  want  to  tell  you 
that  the  greatest  asset  that  this  church  has,  consists 
of  the  men  and  women  who  are  big  in  character ;  the 
living  assets  of  the  church.  But  when  we  have  men 
and  women  who  are  small,  they  are  liabilities. 


Wanted:  Big  Men  59 

FOURTEEN  MEN  FOURTEEN  DAYS 

The  High  Council  has  just  recently  finished  sitting 
in  Independence.  We  were  held  there  for  fourteen 
days,  possibly  a  little  longer.  Fourteen  men  on  the 
supreme  court  of  the  church,  sitting  for  at  least  four- 
teen days,  to  hear  various  cases  of  difficulty  that  had 
come  up  on  appeal.  Some  of  these  cases,  if  not  all  of 
them,  (certainly  the  majority  of  them,)  grew  out  of 
trivial  matters.  They  grew  out  of  the  little  things 
that  could  have  been  avoided  had  the  participants, 
one  or  both  of  them,  been  big  enough  to  avoid  the 
follies  and  offenses  that  brought  them  finally  into 
that  court.  Of  course  by  the  time  the  cases  reached 
us  they  had  grown  to  great  proportions. 

Fourteen  men  for  fourteen  days — that  means  the 
time  of  one  man  for  six  months  and  a  half  to  hear 
those  cases  of  difficulty  that  had  come  up  to  the  High 
Council  in  one  season.  This  was  an  extraordinary 
session,  I  know;  the  longest  session  we  have  had  in 
the  history  of  the  church;  but  just  think  of  it!  The 
idea  of  taking  out  of  the  field  a  man,  a  high  priest, 
efficient  enough  to  sit  on  the  High  Council,  able  to 
preside  over  large  pastorates  like  Kansas  City,  or 
Des  Moines,  taking  such  a  man  as  that  out  of  his 
field  at  church  expense  for  six  and  one  half  months 
to  listen  to  cases  of  difficulty  that  ought  never  to 
have  come  up  at  all ! 

No  case  ever  ought  to  reach  the  church  courts. 
Always  there  is  one  side  or  the  other,  and  frequently 
both  sides,  more  or  less  at  fault. 


60  Square  Blocks 

It  would  be  interesting  to  ascertain  the  time  taken 
up  by  elders'  courts  all  over  the  country;  by  min- 
isters in  charge  called  out  of  their  fields  to  settle 
cases  of  difficulty  in  different  branches ;  and  the  time 
taken  up  by  teachers  in  settling  difficulties,  and  by 
pastors;  and  find  out  just  how  much  time  it  takes 
year  by  year  to  adjust  and  adjudicate  these  diffi- 
culties that  ought  not  to  come  up  at  all.  And  when 
you  have  finally  done  that  and  have  some  idea  of  the 
loss  that  occurs  to  the  church,  not  only  in  point  of 
time,  but  also  in  efficiency,  you  will  agree  that  we 
want  big  men  and  big  women. 

We  may  become  great  by  being  humble.  When- 
ever you  find  an  individual  who  is  trying  to  exalt 
himself,  and  thinking  all  the  time  how  big  he  is, 
you  will  find  an  individual  who  is  not  growing.  It 
is  said  that  a  watched  kettle  never  boils;  and  the 
individual  who  watches  his  soul,  and  congratulates 
himself  that  he  is  getting  a  little  bigger  than  some- 
body else,  is  not  growing  at  all. 

What  is  it  to  become  great?  Probably  everybody 
has  a  desire  to  be  great.  Most  of  us  start  out  in 
life  with  very  high  ambitions.  We  think  that  we 
want  to  do  something  extraordinary.  We  want  to 
achieve  some  high  position.  We  feel  that  we  can 
make  a  success  in  some  field.  Every  healthy  boy 
and  girl  has  that  ambition. 

WHAT  HAPPENS  TO  MOST  OF  US? 

Well,  now,  what  happens  to  most  of  us  ?  A  certain 
number  of  men  start  out.  When  one  of  these  men 


Wanted:  Big  Men  61 

is  forty  years  old,  perhaps,  he  finds  himself  on  a 
farm.  He  started  out  with  those  high  ambitions; 
but  he  finds  himself  at  forty  years  of  age  on  the 
farm,  plowing  the  same  old  fields  that  he  has  plowed 
every  year  in  the  spring,  reaping  the  same  fields  in 
the  fall,  milking  the  same  old  cows  at  night,  doing 
day  by  day  and  year  by  year  the  same  old  round  of 
drudgery. 

The  second  man  finds  himself  in  a  store  behind  the 
counter  at  forty  years  of  age.  He  goes  down  to  the 
store  every  morning,  sells  buttons,  tape,  shoes,  etc., 
and  goes  home  at  night.  The  next  morning  he  gets 
up  and  repeats  the  process. 

The  third  man  finds  himself  in  a  factory  at  forty 
years  of  age.  He  leaves  home  in  the  morning  before 
his  children  are  up.  He  sits  or  stands  at  a  machine 
all  day  long,  and  goes  home  after  dark  after  his 
children  are  asleep— perhaps  doesn't  see  them  awake 
for  months  at  a  time. 

This  is  the  common  lot  of  the  majority  of  people, 
and  fairly  portrays  it.  But  in  the  course  of  time, 
having  failed  to  achieve  what  they  considered  true 
greatness,  these  men  (and  the  same  is  typical  of 
women  also)  begin  to  transfer  their  ambitions  to 
their  children,  if  they  have  children,  and  think  what 
wonderful  things  they  will  accomplish.  They  take 
great  delight  and  pleasure  in  seeing  their  children 
develop.  They  pass  the  torch  along  to  the  next  run- 
ner in  life's  "relay  race." 


62  Square  Blocks 

OUR  CHILDREN  TOO 

Time  goes  on  as  we  watch  the  children  grow,  and 
if  we  live  long  enough,  when  they  are  forty  years 
of  age,  we  see  the  one  boy  on  the  farm,  plowing  the 
same  old  field  in  the  spring,  reaping  the  same  old 
field  in  the  fall,  milking  the  same  old  cows  at  night. 

In  the  second  case  we  see  the  boy,  now  a  man, 
forty  years  old,  behind  the  counter,  selling  buttons, 
tape,  shoes,  etc. ;  and  in  the  third  case  the  boy  goes 
to  the  factory  in  the  morning,  stands  or  sits  at  the 
machine  all  day,  coming  home  after  night.  The 
same  thing  that  has  happened  to  us  has  happened 
to  them,,  and  this  is  the  common  experience  of  man. 

It  is  only  an  exceptional  individual  who  climbs  up 
to  some  position  that  we  commonly  credit  with  being 
great.  It  is  a  fact  that  the  majority  of  humanity 
finds  itself  condemned  to  walk  in  the  common 
walks  of  life;  and  defeated  in  their  ambition  to  be 
great,  as  they  esteem  greatness,  weary  of  endless 
drudgery,  hundreds  become  discouraged  and  commit 
suicide. 

A  TRUE  CONCEPTION  OF  GREATNESS 

There  is  a  wrong  idea  of  greatness.  We  do  not 
have  to  climb  up  into  some  high  position  to  be  great. 
We  do  not  have  to  accumulate  a  lot  of  money  to  be 
great  men  and  women.  Greatness  doesn't  consist 
in  what  we  have,  nor  in  where  we  are,  or  in  what  we 
have  done.  It  consists  in  what  we  are. 


Wanted:  Big  Men  63 

Socrates  was  a  great  man.  He  was  born  of  common 
parentage.  He  never  accumulated  much  money  or 
land.  He  was  poor  all  his  life.  He  went  around  bare- 
footed, wearing  an  old  robe.  He  never  accepted  an 
office,  politically,  excepting  one  almost  forgotten 
term  in  the  senate. 

THE  LIE  TO  AN  OLD  THEORY 

Socrates  was  great  in  spirit.  By  his  unflinching 
integrity,  by  his  absolute  fearlessness  of  everything 
on  earth  excepting  to  do  wrong,  by  his  virtue,  and  his 
honesty,  he  was  so  great  that  his  name  became  pro- 
verbial. It  seems  as  though  nature  designed  him  in 
order  to  give  the  lie  to  the  pagan  world  theory  that 
greatness  consists  in  money,  or  appearance,  or  po- 
sition. Socrates  had  none  of  these;  neither  money, 
position,  nor  dignified  appearance. 

Jesus  Christ  himself,  the  greatest  spirit  that  ever 
walked  in  human  flesh,  was  the  son  of  a  common 
carpenter,  and  is  said  to  have  been  a  carpenter  in  his 
younger  days.  Jesus  himself  was  not  great  because 
of  what  he  did.  It  is  true  that  he  suffered  martyr- 
dom, but  so  did  others — so  did  Socrates.  It  is  true 
that  he  performed  great  miracles,  but  so  did  Elijah. 
It  is  true  that  he  wrought  marvelous  works,  but  he 
said  to  his  disciples,  "The  things  that  I  do  ye  shall 
do,  and  greater  things  than  these." 

Jesus  Christ  was  great  because  of  what  he  was— 
not  because  of  what  he  did,  but  because  of  what  he 
was.  He  was  the  supreme  representation  of  the  God- 


64  Square  Blocks 

like  spirit.  He  said,  "He  that  hath  seen  me  hath 
seen  God."  He  was  great  all  the  time,  whether  in 
action  or  in  repose.  If  you  or  I  ever  are  to  be- 
come great,  it  will  be  because  we  have  become  like 
him,  and  partaken  of  his  Spirit. 

Then  the  great  majority  of  men,  finding  them- 
selves defeated  in  their  ambition  to  become  great  ac- 
cording to  the  worldly  idea,  unable  to  accumulate  a 
great  amount  of  wealth,  unable  to  climb  up  to  the 
high  position  they  covet,  may  satisfy  themselves 
with  this  thought,  that  greatness  is  not  constituted 
of  these  things  at  all.  Greatness  is  of  the  spirit. 
Greatness  is  manifested  in  integrity,  honesty,  and 
virtue ;  and  the  man  who  tills  his  farm,  cultivates  his 
field,  plowing  in  the  spring,  reaping  in  the  fall,  milk- 
ing his  cows  at  night,  may  be  a  greater  man  than 
the  individual  who  has  climbed  up  to  the  senate,  or 
even  to  some  higher  place,  and  has  not  cultivated 
honesty,  integrity,  and  virtue. 

The  man  behind  the  counter,  or  the  man  in  the 
factory,  the  wife  at  home,  all  of  these  may  become 
truly  great.  They  do  not  need  to  become  discouraged 
or  dissatisfied  with  the  toil  of  the  endless  round  of 
life.  They  may  achieve  greatness,  and  their  chil- 
dren after  them ;  they  may  become  great  in  spirit. 

Jesus  tells  us  that  he  that  is  faithful  in  the  things 
that  are  least,  shall  be  made  ruler  over  things  that 
are  great.  Thus  we  prepare  ourselves  by  being  faith- 
ful in  these  smaller  things,  for  greater  positions  of 
trust,  here  or  hereafter;  and  finally,  if  God  or  the 


Wanted:  Big  Men  65 

people  shall  call  us  up  to  some  higher  position, 
ecclesiastical  or  political,  or  in  the  civic  affairs  of 
the  community,  we  will  be  prepared  to  occupy. 


ELBOW  ROOM 

A  man's  gift  maketh  room  for  him. — Proverbs  18:16. 

THE  church  truly  gathers  into  her  domain  of 
every  kind,  as  the  Master  predicted.     Even 
among  those  who  are  good  and  worthy,  (the 
only  kind  we  wish  to  consider  at  this  time,)  there' 
exists  the  utmost  diversity  of  characteristics,  in- 
terests, and  abilities.    This  in  itself  is  immensely  to 
the  advantage  of  the  church,  and  adds  greatly  to  her 
strength  and  efficiency,  if  only  we  look  at  the  mat- 
ter in  the  right  way. 

But  if  we  do  not  look  at  it  in  the  right  way  there 
is  trouble.  Whenever  one  man,  or  a  group  of  men  of 
similar  individuality,  conceives  the  notion  that  all 
men  should  be  recast  in  one  mold,  in  an  exact  replica 
of  themselves,  there  is  trouble.  If  they  are  at  all 
successful  in  their  efforts  the  church  is  impoverished. 

Here  is  one  man,  perhaps  typical  of  a  class,  a  mis- 
sionary in  a  leading  quorum,  who  has  acquired  con- 
siderable culture.  He  has  read  quite  extensively  and 
intelligently,  and  thus  has  enriched  his  mind  on  many 
subjects.  He  is  interested  in  history,  science,  art, 
music,  the  languages,  ethics.  True,  he  does  not  often 
preach  "an  old-fashioned  doctrinal  sermon";  prob- 
ably he  would  not  be  much  good  to  meet  an  Ad- 
ventist  on  the  Sabbath  question  or  on  the  question 
of  "soul  sleeping." 

66 


Elbow  Room  67 

Some  may  be  very  suspicious  of  this  man's  in- 
fluence. Concerning  a  man  of  that  type,  a  certain 
brother  remarked:  "I  have  heard  him  preach  a  whole 
series  of  sermons  and  one  could  not  have  told  from 
any  of  them  that  he  was  a  Latter  Day  Saint." 

But  another  brother  said  of  the  same  man:  "I 
never  heard  him  preach  a  sermon  that  I  did  not  con- 
sider a  Latter  Day  Saint  sermon.  He  always  fills  me 
full  of  religious  enthusiasm." 

Surely  this  man  has  his  field  of  usefulness.  By 
him  the  church  is  enriched.  It  is  enabled  to  compass 
a  broader  field.  Because  we  are  inclined  to  stick 
pretty  close  to  the  first  principles  most  of  the  time, 
we  ought  not  deny  this  man  elbow  room  to  do  his 
work. 

Here  is  another  man  of  a  different  type,  a  "chap- 
ter and  verse  man/'  a  "first  principle  man,"  who 
sticks  to  doctrinal  themes  and  always  has  his  scrip- 
tural quotations  at  hand.  He  is  a  four-square  man, 
armed  at  every  angle  against  theological  aggression 
—prepared  for  Adventists,  "Campbellites,"  Catho- 
lics, Spiritualists,  Dunkards,  Methodists,  Christian 
Scientists,  what  not. 

While  admired  by  many,  this  man  has  his  critics; 
those  who  allege  that  he  is  too  dogmatic,  too  narrow, 
too  old-fashioned.  But  he  is  just  the  man  to  use  in 
many  places  along  the  thousands  of  miles  of  frontier 
that  the  church  must  defend.  He  is  a  splendid  prose- 
lyter.  He  is  rugged  and  fearless.  He  does  not 
shrink  from  the  trenches. 

He  is  equipped  to  instruct  and  reach  many  in- 


68  Square  Blocks 

quirers  who,  like  the  vast  majority  of  worldly  peo- 
ple, are  hardly  yet  in  the  primary  class  in  theology. 
He  is  preeminently  successful  in  those  fields  that  de- 
mand and  must  have  "first  principle  preaching," 
where  all  the  cry  must  be  repentance. 

The  church  is  really  fortunate  to  have  these  two 
men,  widely  as  they  differ.  Why  should  either  crowd 
the  other  or  seek  to  depreciate  his  usefulness  ?  Sup- 
pose all  our  members  were  just  like  one  or  the  other 
of  these  two?  Let  each  man  ask  himself: 

What  kind  of  church  would  our  church  be, 
If  every  member  were  just  like  me? 

Most  of  us  will  admit  that  it  would  be  a  very  lop- 
sided affair — exceedingly  strong  at  some  points,  but 
terribly  weak  at  other  points.  No  one  man  com- 
pletes the  circle  of  perfection.  Most  men  are  made 
up  of  a  mixture  of  strength  and  weakness — "iron 
mixed  with  miry  clay."  Let  every  man  throw  his 
strength  into  the  work  in  his  own  way,  if  it  is  not 
an  unlawful  way.  We  are  enriched  and  strength- 
ened by  this  great  variety. 

How  broad  is  our  commission.  No  one  man  can 
cover  the  entire  field.  Why  should  one  complain  be- 
cause all  do  not  specialize  on  the  theme  that  he  has 
selected  for  himself? 

One  man  is  a  great  student  of  books.  He  keeps 
abreast  with  contemporaneous  thought  in  the  univer- 
sities, and  reads  all  the  new  books  as  well  as  the  old. 
Shall  ^ve  crowd  him  out  because  he  has  "book  learn- 


Elbow  Room  69 

ing"?  or  discount  him  because  his  sentences  are 
grammatical?  Shall  we  allow  the  "contempt  of  the 
unlearned"  to  fall  upon  him  and  hinder  his  work? 
Shall  we  dismiss  him  with  the  epithet,  "High  brow"  ? 

Most  certainly  not.  Use  him.  Give  the  man  el- 
bow room — room  according  to  his  strength. 

But  here  is  another  man  who  does  not  care  for 
books.  He  may  even  feel  a  degree  of  misplaced  pride 
in  the  mistaken  idea  that  he  is  not  educated.  He  fails 
to  realize  that  he  gets  his  education  from  men.  He 
is  a  student  of  man.  He  talks  and  questions  and 
observes.  Socrates  got  his  education  in  that  way. 
He  was  not  much  seen  bothering  his  head  over  books. 
He  was  in  the  market  place,  at  the  banquet,  on  the 
street,  wherever  men  were,  asking  questions,  "cross- 
questioning  humanity,"  as  one  writer  expressed  it. 

How  about  this  man?  He  has  no  university  de- 
gree ;  sometimes  he  gets  badly  mixed  up  in  the  mazes 
of  the  king's  English.  But  he  may  have  most  ex- 
cellent judgment  in  homely,  practical  matters.  God 
can  use  him,  too.  And  there  is  not  the  slightest 
reason  why  these  two  men  should  run  afoul  of  each 
other;  or  that  either  should  affirm,  "The  church  has 
no  need  of  you." 

The  church  needs  real  men.  If  they  are  not  all 
alike,  so  much  the  better.  Are  they  upstanding  men  ? 
That  is  the  question.  Can  we  trust  them?  Are 
they  loyal  men? 

There  may  even  be  among  us  here  and  there  a 
man  of  the  iconoclast  type,  who  may  challenge  an- 


70  Square  Blocks 

cient  truth  at  some  points.  Or  rather  he  may  chal- 
lenge our  interpretation,  or  perception,  of  truth. 
What  shall  we  do  with  him?  Shall  we  come  down  on 
him  quick  and  hard  and  crowd  him  out  of  the 
ch  urch  ?  Is  there  or  is  there  not  elbow  room  for  such 
a  man? 

Must  we  join  the  hue  and  cry  that  has  pursued 
the  heretic  in  all  ages?  The  "heresy  hunt/'  as  Pres- 
ident Joseph  Smith  called  it,  formerly  ended  at  the 
stake.  The  methods  are  different  now.  How  about 
the  spirit?  We  will  not  answer  these  questions, 
but  leave  them  for  our  readers  to  ponder,  merely 
suggesting  this  true  principle :  whatever  steps  may 
be  necessary  in  order  to  curtail  or  prevent  the 
preaching  of  error  should  be  taken  with  kindly  care, 
with  a  broad  and  enlightened  comprehension  of  hu- 
man characteristics  and  divine  truth  and  compas- 
sion, and  not  in  the  hard,  bitter,  dogmatic  spirit 
of  the  ancient  heretic  baiter. 

We  plead  for  a  broad  and  liberal  attitude ;  one  that 
will  recognize  the  varied  richness  of  our  church  en- 
terprises, and  the  strength  and  beauty  in  the  aggre- 
gation of  the  wonderfully  diverse  characteristics  of 
those  whom  God  calls — according  to  the  gifts  of  God 
unto  them" 

Let  every  man  have  elbow  room  to  stand  up  and 
work,  providing,  of  course,  his  work  is  in  any  sense 
productive  of  good  and  destructive  of  evil.  Let  all 
the  members  work  together  without  interference 
and  with  mutual  confidence  and  honor. 


Elbow  Room  71 

Paul  must  have  had  some  such  thought  in  mind 
when  he  wrote  his  famous  analogy  of  the  church  and 
the  body  (1  Corinthians  12).  He  says:  "If  they  were 
all  one  member,  where  were  the  body?"  He  goes  on 
to  rejoice,  "But  now  are  they  many  members,  yet  one 
body."  He  affirms  that  "God  set  the  members  every 
one  of  them  in  the  body,  as  it  hath  pleased  him." 
And  he  concludes  that  the  eye  cannot  say  unto  the 
handy  "I  have  no  need  of  thee,"  and  so  on. 

Yes,  it  is  said  in  modern  revelation,  "All  are  called 
according  to  the  gifts  of  God  unto  them."  I  can- 
not labor  with  your  gifts;  nor  you  with  mine.  I 
should  not  seek  to  force  you  to  conform  to  my  type ; 
but  all  should  seek  to  approach,  each  in  his  sphere, 
the  Christ  type.  In  that  way  all,  by  unity  in  di- 
versity, may  make  up  the  perfect  church,  the  efficient 
body  of  Christ,  "that  there  should  be  no  schism  in 
the  body." 


THE   COAST  PATROL 


A^  A  TIME  when  I  was  quite  ill  in  Southern 
California,  and  confined  to  my  wheel  chair,  I 
used  often  to  sit  and  watch  the  deep  blue  sea 
and  listen  to  the  mournful  murmur  of  the  waves.  The 
waves  were  not  half  so  mournful  as  (I,  nor  the  sea 
nearly  so  blue.  Yet  the  experience  had  its  compen- 
sations. For  there  I  made  the  acquaintance  of  a 
notable  band  of  aviators.  Many  of  them  I  came  to 
know  by  sight,  and  some  of  them  personally,  as  for 
instance  Captain  Golightly  and  Lieutenant  Flapper. 
These  aviators  of  Hermosa  Beach  are  among  the 
very  best  in  the  world  and  take  the  air  quite  regard- 
less of  weather  conditions.  Well  may  it  be  so,  for 
their  fathers  were  versed  in  aeronautics  at  a  time 
when,  according  to  Darwin,  the  great-grandfather  of 
the  Wright  brothers  lived  in  a  tree.  They  looked 
down  serenely  on  Kittyhawk  and  watched  man's 
first  erratic  attempts  to  fly.  It  is  even  possible  that 
they  smiled  at  Darius  Green,  though  I  never  did  see 
one  of  them  smile  at  anything.  Probably  their  chil- 
dren will  fly  after  the  last  great  aeroplane  has 
plunged  into  the  sea.  I  dubbed  these  fellows  the 
Coast  Patrol,  and  the  following  lines  were  written 
in  memory  of  their  courage  and  prowess : 

72 


The  Coast  Patrol  73 

THE  SONG  OF  THE  SEA  GULLS 

Since  wave  first  broke  or  fog  blew  in, 
Since  sailor  tanked  his  hold  with  gin, 
Since  ship  had  sail  or  fish  had  fin, 
We've  kept  the  beach  from  shoal  to  shoal — 
We  are  the  flying  Coast  Patrol. 

Since  Adam  ate  his  apple  down, 
And  Eve  put  on  her  wedding  gown, 
And  both  raised  Cain  in  Eden  town, 
We've  kept  the  sea  from  deep  to  shoal — 
We  are  the  flying  Coast  Patrol. 

Till  waves  shall  rest  their  foamy  crest, 
And  Sea  no  longer  heave  her  breast, 
Our  wings  shall  to  the  gale  be  pressed. 
Man  claims  that  he  alone  has  soul — 
But  we  have  wings — the  Coast  Patrol. 

Till  stars  no  more  their  vigils  keep, 

Or  moon  draw  tides  from  deep  to  deep. 

Or  women  for  their  sailors  weep, 

We'll  keep  the  beach  from  shoal  to  shoal — 

We  are  the  flying  Coast  Patrol. 


DESIRE   FOR   TWELVE    O'CLOCK 
AT.  ELEVEN 

JOHN  SPARGO  comments  oh  what  he  terms  the 
desire  of  humanity  for  twelve  o'clock  when  it  is 
only  eleven. 

An  impassioned  speaker  may  implant  in  some 
heart  a  noble  ideal.  To  accept  and  properly  appraise 
the  ideal  is  a  matter  of  moment.  To  live  up  to  it  and 
bring  it  to  fruition  may  be  a  work  of  years.  There 
comes  the  test  of  character.  Will  the  man  weakly 
indulge  in  the  wish  that  the  time  of  fruition  had 
come?  Or  will  he  wisely  use  the  time  in  ways  cal- 
culated to  make  his  dream  real. 

The  boy  or  girl  in  high  school  or  college  looks 
longingly  towards  commencement  day.  How  splendid 
will  be  the  hour  of  graduation.  The  desire  for  twelve 
o'clock  when  it  is  only  eleven  becomes  very  keen. 
But  there  are  those  two,  three,  or  four  years  yet  re- 
maining before  graduation.  There  are  geometry, 
Latin,  physics,  and  many  other  giants  to  be  over- 
come. Will  he  (or  she)  use  every  minute  of  the 
time  to  advance  and  win  out  to  graduation  with 
honors?  Or  will  the  desire  for  twelve  o'clock  when 
it  is  only  eleven  consume  all  the  energy  that  is  ex- 
pended ? 

The  young  nurse  in  the  sanitarium  looks  longingly 
towards  the  day  when  the  course  of  training  will  be 
ended.  How  fine  it  will  be  to  don  the  uniform  of  a 

74 


The  Desire  for  Twelve  O'clock  at  tileven  75 

graduate  trained  nurse!  But  there  are  those  long 
months  of  toil.  There  are  those  disagreeable,  revolt- 
ing, menial  tasks  to  be  performed,  those  long  vigils 
to  be  kept,  those  problems  to  master,  that  discipline 
to  acquire.  There  is  not  a  moment  to  waste  wishing 
it  were  twelve  at  eleven.  If  time  is  wasted,  the 
twelve  o'clock  of  the  girl's  ambition  will  never  strike. 

There  is  the  young  elder  just  beginning  his  min- 
istry, or  perhaps  just  preparing  for  it.  How  he  looks 
forward  to  the  day  when  he  shall  prosecute  a  suc- 
cessful foreign  mission,  or  preside  over  an  active 
branch,  or  as  an  evangelist  move  throngs  to  repent- 
ance by  his  eloquence. 

But  wishing  will  not  make  it  twelve  o'clock  for  him 
when  it  is  only  eleven.  He  must  use  that  hour  in 
preparation — study,  prayer,  experience — these  will 
equip  him  for  twelve  o'clock  when  it  really  comes. 

A  member  of  the  class  in  religious  education  in 
Graceland  College  said :  "We  don't  seem  to  be  getting 
anywhere !"  Another  added :  "They  expect  too  much 
of  us.  When  we  get  up  to  speak  they  expect  a  won- 
derful sermon;  better  than  an  old,  experienced  min- 
ister could  preach." 

True,  perhaps — possibly  the  boys  have  been  wish- 
ing for  twelve  o'clock  at  eleven.  Perhaps  the  church 
has  expected  them  to  bring  forth  noonday  fruits  at 
eleven.  It  would  not  be  fair  to  expect  that,  at  gradua- 
tion, after  only  one  year  of  preparation,  each  man 
should  come  out  a  Heman  C.  Smith  in  logic,  a  Joseph 
Luff  in  eloquence,  a  Charles  Derry  in  piety,  and  an 


76  Square  Blocks 

E.  E.  Long  in  polemics.  Don't  expect  twelve  o'clock 
at  eleven. 

The  whole  church  has  caught  a  vision  of  Zion 
redeemed.  We  get  it  from  the  revelations  and  from 
the  impassioned  appeals  of  our  orators.  It  takes  only 
a  short  time  for  the  desire  to  grow  in  our  hearts.  It 
takes  a  long  time  to  work  out  its  fulfillment.  So 
little  has  been  done!  Shall  we  sit  down  and  lament, 
or  scold,  as  our  temperament  may  be,  because  Zion  is 
not  yet  realized — idly  repine  because  it  is  not  twelve 
o'clock  at  eleven?  Or  shall  we  set  ourselves  to  use 
those  sixty  minutes  that  remain? 

We  cannot  find  a  short  cut  past  the  rigid  discipline, 
the  renunciation,  the  sacrifice,  the  remodeling  of 
thought,  habit,  character,  the  consolidation,  the  so- 
cialization that  must  come  before  it  is  twelve  o'clock 
in  Zion.  Let  us  use  the  hour. 


THE  FLIGHT  OF  THE  AEROPLANES 

JERUSALEM,  September  12.— Armed  airships 
and  aeroplanes  are  continually  flying  over  the 
birthplace  of  the  Prince  of  Peace  at  Bethlehem. 
Nearly  the  entire  Holy  Land  has  been  transformed 
into  a  military  camp.  Soldiers  are  maneuvering  ev- 
ery day  on  the  Mount  of  Olives,  at  Golgotha  and  Je- 
rusalem. The  English,  French,  and  Russian  convents 
have  been  turned  into  barracks,  and  between  Judea 
and  Jericho,  where  transportation  was  by  mule  pack 
in  the  days  when  Christ  came  to  bring  'Peace  on 
earth,'  a  road  is  being  constructed  for  armored  mo- 
tor cars. 

"Long  columns  of  buffaloes,  driven  by  Arab 
peasants,  are  hauling  carts  loaded  with  powder, 
projectiles,  and  other  supplies  for  the  Turkish 
army,  the  favorite  routes  of  pilgrims  in  Palestine. 
Fast  dromedaries  of  the  camel  corps  maintain  com- 
munciation  between  the  camps  in  Palestine  and  the 
Turkish  headquarters.  It  is  supposed  that  the  con- 
centration of  the  young  recruits  in  the  Holy  Land  is 
with  a  view  to  another  attack  upon  Egypt." — The 
Des  Moines  (Iowa)  Register,  September  13,  1915. 

Not  the  least  dramatic  of  the  incidents  of  the 
World  War  is  that  recorded  in  the  foregoing  news 
item.  Armored  aeroplanes,  like  birds  of  prey,  now 
cast  their  black  shadows  on  Bethlehem.  Soldiers 
are  drilling  at  the  Mount  of  Olives. 

We  heard  a  girl  say,  "I  love  to  climb  to  the  top  of 

77 


78  Square  Blocks 

a  mountain,  where  I  can  look  up  and  up,  almost,  it 
seems,  clear  into  heaven/'  Jesus  also  loved  to  stand 
upon  an  eminence. 

At  the  very  time  when  he  was  delivering  his  dis- 
courses regarding  the  signs  of  his  second  coming  and 
the  end  of  the  world,  he  spent  his  nights  on  the 
Mount  of  Olives. 

"And  in  the  daytime  he  was  teaching  in  the  tem- 
ple; and  at  night  he  went  out,  and  abode  in  the 
mount  that  is  called  the  Mount  of  Olives." — Luke 
21:37. 

If  he  were  there  to-day,  what  a  change  he  would 
witness.  If  that  girl  were  to  climb  the  Mount  of 
Olives  now  and  look  up  into  the  sky  she  would  not  see 
far  into  heaven.  Armored  aeroplanes  would  arrest 
her  vision.  They  have  taken  the  place  of  the  angelic 
hosts  that  sang,  "Peace  on  earth,  good  will  toward 
men."  Her  reveries  would  be  disturbed  by  the  tramp 
of  soldiers.  They  march  now  where  the  twelve  apos- 
tles of  the  Lamb  formerly  abode  with  their  Master. 

What  does  it  mean?  These  are  but  signs  of  the 
times  mentioned  by  Jesus,  when  wars  and  rumors  of 
wars  should  engage  the  attention  of  men.  Even  the 
sacred  stillness  of  the  upper  air  in  the  Holy  Land  is 
disturbed  and  affrighted  by  the  whirling  propellers 
of  airships. 

In  his  wonderful  poem,  Locksley  Hall,  Tennyson 
says :  "For.  I  dipped  into  the  future,  far  as  human  eye 
could  see." 

Evidently  he  dipped  into  the  future  farther  than 
human  eye  unaided  could  penetrate.  Without  doubt 


The  Flight  of  the  Aeroplanes  79 

the  major  poets  have  at  times  been  inspired  with  the 
prophetic  spirit;  they  are  spiritually  kin  to  the 
prophets.  He  continued: 

"For  I  dipped  into  the  future,  far  as  human  eye  could  see, 
Saw  the  vision  of  the  world,  and  all  the  wonder  yet  to  be; 
Saw  the  heavens  filled  with  commerce,  argosies  of  magic 

sails, 
Pilots  of  the  purple  twilight,  dropping  down  with  costly 

bales ; 
Heard  the  heavens  filled  with  shouting,  and  there  rained  a 

ghastly  dew 
From   the   nations'   airy   navies   grappling   in   the   central 

blue." 

Daily  the  air  men  of  the  nations  fight  among  the 
clouds.  A  war  plane  drops  down  above  a  great 
Zeppelin  and  fires  into  her.  There  is  an  explosion, 
the  members  of  the  crew  are  blown  to  bits — as  when 
Tennyson  in  his  vision  heard  the  heavens  filled  with 
shouting,  and  beheld  a  ghastly  dew  raining  from  the 
nations'  airy  navies  grappling  in  the  central  blue. 
A  great  Zeppelin  hangs  suspended  in  midheaven  at 
midnight  and  rains  fire  and  earthquake  on  populous 
London. 

What  more  spectacular  sign  could  be  set  in  the 
heavens  than  this  flight  of  the  armored  airships,  now 
taking  place  over  Europe,  and  especially  over  the 
Holy  Land,  where  Jesus  was  born,  and  where  he 
dwelt  when  he  said:  "Ye  shall  hear  of  wars  and 
rumors  of  wars  .  .  .  for  nation  shall  rise  against 
nation,  and  kingdom  against  kingdom." 
October  6,  1915. 


THE  DAWN  AT   MIDNIGHT 

IN  THE  small  hours  of  Monday  morning,  Novem- 
ber 11  [1918],  we  were  awakened  by  the  roaring 
whistles  of  Kansas  City.    There  was  a  sound  in 
the  air  that  no  one  had  ever  heard  before.     Those 
whistles  conveyed  upon  the  startled  air  a  message. 
The  world  war  was  over.    Peace  had  come. 

We  wished  for  the  genius  of  Poe,  who  interpreted 
the  bells,  that  we  might  interpret  this  message  of  the 
whistles.  But  the  whistles  were  not  like  Poe's 
"wild  alarum  bells"  with  their  "tale  of  terror"  in 
the  "startled  ear  of  night"— the  bells  that  "feel  a 
glory  in  so  rolling  on  the  human  heart  a  stone." 
This  was  a  message  of  joy,  literally  heard  the  world 
around.  For  the  whistles  were  but  the  prelude  to  a 
bedlam  of  noise  and  a  welter  of  emotions  that  cir- 
cled the  globe. 

The  expression  that  was  denied  us  came  to  Sister 
Viola  Short,  who  wrote  a  splendid  poem,  beginning: 

"Was  ever  the  dawn  at  midnight? 

Aye,  once  in  the  long  ago, 
When  angels  sang  o'er  Bethlehem's  plain 
To  a  sleeping  world  below. 

"Has  the  miracle  been  repeated? 

Last  night  when  darkness  was  deep, 
Glad  sounds — the  dawning  of  peace  on  earth — 
Rang  out  on  a  world  in  sleep. 
80 


The  Dawn  at  Midnight  81 

"They  spoke  of  millions  unshackled, 

Henceforth,  like  us,  they  were  freed; 
Of  the  passing  of  thrones  and  dominions — 
As  the  Lord  hims^f  has  decreed." 

The  world  may  have  indulged  in  fantastic,  irra- 
tional, even  profane  forms  of  celebration.  But  with- 
out doubt  when  the  whistles  began  to  blow  in  the 
night  many  a  deeply  reverent  prayer  of  thanksgiv- 
ing was  offered  up.  Mothers  whose  sons  were  in 
France,  or  in  the  cantonments,  knew  how  to  bring 
an  acceptable  offering  of  prayer. 

For  those  whistles  said  to  us :  "Now  the  boys  may 
get  up  out  of  the  trenches.  No  more  will  they  be 
deluged  with  liquid  flames  and  suffocated  with  poison 
gases.  No  more  will  the  murderous  lunge  of  the 
bayonet  rend  the  God-ordained  unity  of  spirit  and 
body.  No  more  will  crashing  shells  in  an  instant 
transform  strong  men  into  lifelong  mental  wrecks 
and  physical  caricatures  of  humanity.  The  hungry 
throat  of  the  sea  is  closed.  The  avenues  of  heaven 
are  no  longer  open  to  the  assassin.  The  children  of 
London  and  Paris  may  sleep  at  night.  Belgium  is 
free.  France  is  free."  , 

And  so  the  song  went  on.  Promising, '  or  seeming 
to  promise  us  all  of  these  things.  For  all  human 
promises  are  uncertain.  In  the  very  dawn  of  peace, 
threats  were  and  are  still  visible.  But  in  any  event 
one  supreme  effort  of  the  adversary  of  men's  souls 
has  been  defeated  and  crushed.  Democracy  has  won 
a  signal  victory  over  autocracy. 


82  Square  Blocks 

We  believe  that  this  victory  was  not  won  without 
divine  aid.  Not  by  accident  did  the  Kaiser  stand  at 
the  head  of  a  coalition  that  was  dedicated  to  the 
autocratic  domination  of  the  Hwld.  Autocracy  was 
envisaged  in  his  person.  He  was  the  chief  exponent 
of  its  doctrines. 

If  Satan  searched  the  halls  of  time  to  find  a  fit 
spirit  to  head  his  assault  upon  humanity  in  the  clos- 
ing scenes  of  time,  it  would  be  fatuous  to  suppose 
that  God  left  the  leadership  of  free  peoples  to  hazard 
and  chance  in  that  supreme  crisis,  when  the  Kaiser's 
gamble  with  the  "iron  dice  of  fate"  drew  to  its  close. 

What  a  wonderful  period  has  been  compassed  in 
the  past  few  weeks !  It  has  been  the  time  of  falling 
crowns.  While  the  plague  of  influenza  has  swept 
the  land,  closing  our  churches,  and  making  us  all 
"isolated  Saints/'  that  in  our  seclusion  we  might  re- 
flect upon  the  judgments  of  God  and  the  verification 
of  his  promises,  world  events  have  crowded  the  pages 
of  our  newspapers  until  nothing  remained  that  could 
astound. 

The  Holy  Land  was  fully  wrested  from  the  Turk. 
Turkey,  Bulgaria,  and  Austria  fell.  And  finally, 
German  might  melted  away  in  a  night.  The  Kaiser 
abdicated.  Little  kings  without  number  were  shaken 
from  their  thrones.  In  the  last  stronghold  of  au- 
tocracy men  began  to  talk  of  a  republic.  What  the 
future  holds  we  can  only  surmise.  All  Europe  is 
now  a  fertile  field  for  the  sowing  of  the  seed  of 
anarchy.  Yet  events  may  turn  the  other  way  to- 
wards a  period  of  ordered  government. 


The  Dawn  at  Midnight  83 

One  form  of  evil  is  crushed,  but  we  must  not  sup- 
pose that  another  will  not  arise.  One  walking  the 
streets  of  Kansas  City  when  the  peace  celebration 
was  at  its  highest,  passed  the  open  door  of  a  saloon. 
He  heard  the  men  within,  standing  at  the  sloppy 
bar,  singing,  "Glory,  glory,  hallelujah.  Our  God  goes 
marching  on!"  They  were  too  drunk  to  march  any 
longer.  But  their  god  was  marching  on.  The  mil- 
lennium has  not  yet  come,  even  if  Hindenburg  is 
eating  straw,  and  the  Kaiser  gone  to  lie  down  with 
the  lambs  of  Holland. 

Whatever  may  occur,  the  Saints  may  rest  as- 
sured in  the  triumph  of  the  Lord's  work.  We  must 
hate  iniquity,  no  matter  in  what  form  it  may  reveal 
itself  in  days  to  come;  and  we  must  love  righteous- 
ness. The  prophecies  are  being  fulfilled  wonder- 
fully. Events  like  a  mighty  scroll  unroll  with  be- 
wildering rapidity.  All,  all  are  in  harmony  with  the 
"more  sure  word  of  prophecy"  recorded  for  our  ed- 
ification. Let  us  remain  faithful  until  the  Day  Star 
of  our  hope  arises. 


TWO  REMARKABLE  WISHES 
GRANTED 

A^  ONE  time  Job  expressed  a  remarkable  wish: 
"Oh  that  my  words  were  now  written ;  oh 
that  they  were  printed  in  a  book!  that  they 
were  graven  with  an  iron  pen  and  lead  in  the  rock 
for  ever!" 

In  the  natural  course  of  events,  as  things  move  in 
this  age,  that  which  is  written  to-day  is  forgotten  to- 
morrow. The  world  is  flooded  with  books,  magazines, 
newspapers,  and  periodicals  of  every  imaginable  de- 
scription. One  entering  a  modern  library  with  the 
purpose  to  improve  his  mind,  and  get  in  touch  with 
modern  ideas,  is  confronted  by  a  mass  of  literature 
of  such  formidable  bulk  as  to  weary  and  almost  dis- 
courage a  busy  man,  at  the  very  beginning  of  his 
research.  However,  he  is  consoled  by  the  thought 
that  much  of  it  is  ephemeral  in  nature,  and  even  if 
he  can  never  read  it  he  will  not  miss  much. 

The  word  ephemeral  comes  from  ephemera,  mean- 
ing "lasting  but  a  day,"  and  is  a  medical  term  mean- 
ing, "a  fever  of  one  day's  duration."  Not  a  bad  term 
to  apply  to  the  furore  attending  many  much  heralded 
but  short-lived  "best  sellers."  There  is  danger  that 
among  this  mass  of  literature,  the  unsophisticated 
student  will  miss  the  particular  good  things  that  he 
should  read.  We  need  literary  pilots  to-day. 

84 


Two  Remarkable  Wishes  Granted  85 

The  ideas  of  fifty  years  ago  are  discarded.  Books 
that  were  considered  revolutionary  ten  years  ago 
are  forgotten.  Who  can  speak  loud  enough  to  be 
heard  above  the  babel,  or  write  fast  enough  to  keep 
ahead  of  oblivion? 

'  Yet  there  was  Job,  over  three  thousand  years  ago, 
aspiring  to  perpetual  audience.  He  wished  that  his 
words  might  be  printed  in  a  book  for  all  generations 
to  read ;  he  longed  to  seize  the  mallet  and  chisel  and 
engrave  them  upon  the  solid  rock,  and  fill  the  chis- 
eled letters  with  lead,  so  that  they  might  become  an 
enduring  memorial. 

There  must  have  seemed  little  prospect  that  Job's 
ardent  desire  for  publicity  would  ever  be  gratified. 
Yet,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  his  wish  was  granted 
beyond  his  most  extravagant  dream.  Through  many 
perils  and  strange  vicissitudes  his  words  were  pre- 
served, and  have  come  down  to  us,  as  one  says, 
' 'Borne  on  the  wings  of  a  hundred  translations." 
They  are  indeed  printed  in  a  book,  and  have  a  place 
in  every  library,  and  in  multitudes  of  homes  of  high 
and  low  degree  the  world  over. 

Here  is  the  burden  of  the  message  that  he  wished 
to  publish  to  all  ages : 

"I  know  that  my  Redeemer  liveth,  and  that  he 
shall  stand  at  the  latter  day  upon  the  earth :  and 
though  after  my  skin  worms  destroy  this  body,  yet 
in  my  flesh  shall  I  see  God :  whom  I  shall  see  for  my- 
self, and  mine  eyes  shall  behold,  and  not  another; 
though  my  reins  be  consumed  within  me." 

You   see,   unlike  most  literature,  Job's  message 


86  Square  Blocks 

dealt  with  things  eternal.  That  was  the  reason  he 
was  consumed  with  such  an  ardent  desire  to  have  it 
preserved  and  given  the  greatest  publicity.  The- 
ories, philosophies,  speculations,  gossip  may  be  pub- 
lished and  forgotten;  but  here  is  a  statement  of  an 
eternal  and  important  truth  that  has  never  been 
forgotten  and  never  will  be  forgotten. 

In  his  second  epistle  the  Apostle  Peter  expressed 
a  wish  similar  to  the  one  voiced  by  Job.  Being  a 
positive  man,  Peter  declared  a  determination  to  take 
steps  calculated  to  accomplish  his  desire.  He  said: 
"Moreover  I  will  endeavor  that  ye  may  be  able  after 
my  decease  to  have  these  things  always  in  remem- 
brance." 

These  are  the  things  that  he  desired  that  the 
people  should  always  have  in  remembrance: 

"And  besides  this,  giving  all  diligence,  add  to  your 
faith  virtue ;  and  to  virtue  knowledge ;  and  to  knowl- 
edge temperance;  and  to  temperance  patience;  and 
to  patience  godliness;  and  to  godliness  brotherly 
kindness;  and  to  brotherly  kindness  charity.  For 
if  these  things  be  in  you,  and  abound,  they  make  you 
that  ye  shall  neither  be  barren  nor  unfruitful  in  the 
knowledge  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  But  he  that 
lacketh  these  things  is  blind,  and  cannot  see  afar 
off,  and  hath  forgotten  that  he  was  purged  from  his 
old  sins.  Wherefore  the  rather,  brethren,  give  dili- 
gence to  make  your  calling  and  election  sure:  for 
if  ye  do  these  things,  ye  shall  never  fall :  for  so  an 


Two  Remarkable  Wishes  Granted  87 

entrance  shall  be  ministered  unto  you  abundantly 
into  the  everlasting  kingdom  of  our  Lord  and  Savior 
Jesus  Christ.  Wherefore  I  will  not  be  negligent  to 
put  you  always  in  remembrance  of  these  things, 
though  ye  know  them,  and  be  established  in  the  pres- 
ent truth." 

Very  learned  epistles,  written  by  very  able  and 
distinguished  men,  and  published  twelve  months  ago, 
are  forgotten;  but  the  wish  expressed  by  Peter  was 
granted,  and  the  epistle  of  the  humble  fisherman  is 
still  preserved  and  given  the  widest  publicity  that 
the  printed  page  ever  gave  to  any  message. 

He,  too,  propounded  things  permanent  and  above 
valuation.  Job  wrote  of  the  immortality  of  the  soul, 
and  of  the  great  work  of  the  Redeemer,  who  has 
made  it  possible  for  us  to  meet  him  in  the  flesh  on 
this  earth,  even  after  death  and  decay  have  had  their 
brief  reign  of  terror.  Peter  wrote  of  virtue,  knowl- 
edge, temperance,  brotherly  kindness,  charity,  and 
godliness;  those  wonderful  virtues  that  will  trans- 
form human  nature  and  make  one  worthy  of  the 
resurrection  of  which  Job  so  confidently  wrote. 

The  messages  are  correlated  and  the  one  completes 
the  other.  We  can  afford  to  forget  a  whole  library 
of  worldy  knowledge,  if  we  can  but  remember  these 
things  of  heavenly  and  eternal  worth. 


GOOD   COUNSEL 

[ERE  is  no  mistake  that  the  church  has  made, 
or  that  individuals  have  made,  that  might  not 
have  been  avoided  had  men  and  women  heeded 
the  words  of  good  counsel  previously  given  through 
the  prophets  for  their  advice  and  protection. 

In  an  address  to  the  General  Conference  in  1900 
President  Joseph  Smith  said: 

"I  warn  the  brethren,  as  I  have  in  the  past,  against 
the  machinations  of  the  Adversary  sowing  dissension 
between  brethren.  The  Adversary  has  tried,  in  the 
past,  to  lead  us  astray  by  a  popular  sin.  I  do  not  be- 
lieve he  will  be  able  to  do  that  again ;  our  faces  are 
set  like  flints  in  that  direction.  But  he  can  and  will 
endeavor  to  sow  dissension  between  the  brethren; 
and  those  who  are  sufficiently  sensitive  to  his  at- 
tacks, his  approaches,  will  be  moved  upon  by  him, 
and  there  will  be  trouble  between  them." 

Some  of  those  who  said  amen  at  the  time  may  have 
forgotten  the  admonition.  On  more  than  the  one 
occasion  he  warned  us  that  we  need  not  again  fear 
that  the  church  would  fall  into  apostasy  such  as 
came  with  Brigham  Young's  regime ;  that  the  danger 
of  the  future  would  lie  in  suspicion,  disunion,  jeal- 
ousy, and  dissension. 

WHO  IS  YOUR  GENERAL? 

On  the  eve  of  a  great  battle  Napoleon  was  asked, 
"What  generals  among  your  opponents  do  you  most 

88 


Good  Counsel  89 

fear?"  He  replied,  without  hesitation:  "General 
Distrust  and  General  Disunion."  Is  there  a  lesson 
there  for  Latter  Day  Saints? 

Distrust  and  disunion  tend  to  defeat  our  work. 
Even  when  they  are  not  general,  but  only  sporadic, 
they  do  harm,  and  may  always  spread  and  do  more 
harm.  Under  what  general  do  we  fight?  God  does 
not  promote  distrust  and  disunion  among  his  people. 
The  Devil  is  only  too  eager  to  spread  distrust  and 
disunion  among  God's  followers.  If  we  from  pulpit 
or  in  private  promote  these  things,  whom  are  we 
serving? 

It  is  possible  for  a  very  good  man  with  the  best 
of  intentions  to  conduct  himself  very  unwisely.  For 
that  reason  God  gave  us  some  excellent  counsel  in 
the  revelation  of  1914: 

"The  Spirit  saith  further,  that  the  spirit  of  dis- 
trust and  want  of  confidence  in  those  who  are  called 
and  ordained  to  act  in  the  various  responsible  posi- 
tions in  the  priesthood  and  in  authority  in  the  church 
is  unbecoming  those  professing  faith  in  God,  Jesus 
Christ  his  Son,  and  the  Holy  Spirit  of  truth,  and 
evinces  a  serious  lack  of  that  charity  which  Paul,  an 
apostle  of  Christ,  declared  to  be  the  quality  of  Chris- 
tian virtue  which  thinketh  no  evil.  Those  who  go  out 
from  the  assemblies  and  solemn  conclaves  of  the 
church  should  exercise  great  care  in  their  ministra- 
tion abroad,  both  to  the  branches  where  they  may 
officiate  and  in  their  preaching  the  gospel  to  those 
outside,  to  avoid  solving  seeds  of  distrust  and  sus- 
picion either  in  public  ministration  or  in  private  con- 


90  Square  Blocks 

versation.  The  church  has  been  admonished  here- 
tofore in  this  respect  and  the  Spirit  saith  again,  it  is 
unbecoming  to  the  character  and  calling  of  those  who 
administer  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  the  Lord." 

It  is  quite  possible  by  throwing  out  dark  hints 
from  the  pulpit  to  create  the  impression  that  some- 
thingt  is  very  wrong,  when  in  fact  there  is  not  much 
foundation  for  the  pessimism  of  the  preacher. 
Again,  it  is  possible  in  private  conversation  in  homes 
and  in  the  market  place  to  produce  exactly  the  same 
result  on  a  smaller  scale.  Great  harm  may  be  done 
in  this  way.  And  God  has  told  us  expressly  that  it 
is  unbecoming  the  character  of  a  minister  to  do  such 
a  thing. 

"SEND  NOT  IN  VAIN" 

We  often  sing,  "Send  forth  the  sowers — but  send 
not  in  vain."  How  is  it  when  the  sowers  are  sent 
forth  to  sow  the  gospel  seed,  and  instead,  in  the 
language  of  the  revelation,  "sow  seeds  of  distrust 
and  suspicion"?  Are  they  not  sent  in  vain?  They 
bring  another  gospel  than  that  with  which  they  were 
intrusted,  and  we  are  not  obliged  to  receive  them 
into  our  homes,  neither  can  we  bid  them  Godspeed 
in  their  sowing. 

This  revelation  was  not  given  idly.  It  was  given 
because  it  was  needed.  It  is  needed  yet.  The  man 
who  pursues  the  policy  outlined  in  the  revelation, 
and  condemned,  must  know  that  if  he  is  aware  of 
any  real  transgression  anywhere  there  is  a  lawful 
way  and  an  unlawful  way  to  go  about  the  work  of 


Good  Counsel  91 

bringing  the  transgressors  to  book.  To  merely  sow 
seeds  of  distrust  and  discord  and  leave  the  hearers 
to  guess  at  the  trouble  hinted  at  is  condemned  by  the 
Lord  as  unbecoming  to  a  minister.  He  says  we 
should  avoid  it.  It  is  unlawful.  Brethren,  is  that 
good  counsel?  Let  us  heed  it. 

TAKE    HEED   LEST   YE  BE   CONSUMED 

Many  centuries  ago  Paul  gave  some  words  of  coun- 
sel that  are  still  vital.  He  said : 

"For  all  the  law  is  fulfilled  in  one  word,  even  in 
this,  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself.  But 
if  ye  bite  and  devour  one  another,  take  heed  that  ye 
be  not  consumed  one  of  another." 

Brother  A ,  as  we  will  call  him,  went  into  a 

certain  district  to  labor.  While  there  he  visited  in 
a  certain  home,  and  in  the  presence  of  the  family, 
both  young  and  old,  indulged  in  very  harsh  and  un- 
just criticisms  of  certain  of  his  associates  among 
the  church  "authorities,"  as  they  are  sometimes 
called.  The  members  of  the  family  were  very  much 
disturbed  and  perplexed. 

At  the  very  same  time  in  the  very  same  district 
Brother  B—  -  was  making  equally  unjust  and  un- 
warranted assertions  against  Brother  A .  The 

irony  of  fate  brought  us  report  of  both  incidents  on 

the  same  day.  Brother  A could  not  complain, 

for  he  had  himself  played  the  game.  He  had  done 
unto  others  as  he  would  not  that  they  should  do  unto 
him.  As  he  measured  to  others  it  came  back  to  him. 

But  to  our  minds  came  the  words  of  Paul,  "Take 


92  Square  Blocks 

heed  that  ye  be  not  consumed  one  of  another."  The 
above  incident  by  no  means  represents  the  work  of 
the  ministry  in  general.  God  forbid  that  it  should 
ever  come  to  that  stage.  It  is  an  extreme  case.  But, 
brethren,  there  is  too  much  of  that  work.  It  is 
spiritual  anarchy. 

Those  who  attack  us  from  without  with  falsehood 
and  calumny  are  not  so  much  to  be  feared.  But  if 
those  who  feed  the  sheep  give  them  poison  the  dan- 
ger is  very  great. 


THE   SIN  OF  JEALOUSY 

Whereas  there  is  among  you  envying,  and  strife,  and  divi- 
sions, are  ye  not  carnal,  and  walk  as  men? — 1  Corinthians 

0  .    9 

0  .    O. 

"The  jealous  man  poisons  his  own  banquet, — and  then  eats 
it." 

SOME  men  are  so  unfortunately  constituted  that 
every  success  of  another  seems  to  them  to  de- 
tract from  their  own  success.  They  fear  every 
man  who  shows  some  talent,  lest  he  take  their  place. 
If  in  power,  they  are  disposed  to  beat  down  every 
head  that  shows  itself  above  the  multitude,  lest  it  be 
the  head  of  a  successor. 

Such  an  attitude  of  mind  is  to  be  deplored.  It 
works  injury  to  the  cause  of  God  wherever  it  is 
manifested  by  one  of  his  servants.  It  indicates  that 
the  gospel  has  not  been  permitted  to  do  its  full  work 
with  the  individual.  Away  down  in  the  human  heart 
there  burns  a  little  mean  fire  of  envy  and  hatred  to- 
wards the  successful  brother.  It  is  the  work  of  the 
Devil  to  fan  this  fire ;  it  is  the  work  of  the  gospel  to 
extinguish  it.  The  gospel  will  do  this  work  if  we  per- 
mit it  to,  but  not  if  we  guard  and  cherish  the  smol- 
dering embers. 

That  branch,  district,  stake,  Sunday  school,  or  Re- 
ligio  is  unfortunate  that  has  in  it  a  man  or  woman 
who  is  afraid  to  assist  others,  or  to  give  them  a 

93 


94  Square  Blocks 

chance  to  work  and  develop,  lest  they  outstrip  him  or 
her.  The  true  policy  was  expressed  by  the  aged  elder 
who  during  a  certain  district  reunion  some  years  ago 
was  admonished  thus :  "You  will  have  to  look  out  or 
some  of  these  young  preachers  will  cast  you  older 
ones  in  the  shade."  He  replied,  "I  do  not  care  how 
many  of  them  get  ahead  of  me,  so  long  as  I  am  doing 
the  best  I  can.  I  will  get  behind  them  and  help  push 
them  along,  and  thank  God  that  the  church  has  such 
able  men  to  defend  her  cause." 

This  aged  man  will  live  and  die  unvexed  in  spirit 
if  he  continues  to  maintain  that  attitude.  But  the 
man  who  is  jealous  of  his  brethren  can  never  be 
happy.  He  cannot  enjoy  his  own  blessings  and  op- 
portunities and  successes,  because  he  is  bitterly 
watching  another.  He  cannot  rejoice  in  the  success 
of  others,  because  his  soul  has  not  yet  climbed  to  that 
pure  height  of  unselfishness.  As  the  proverb  says: 
"He  poisons  his  own  banquet — and  then  eats  it." 

To  be  able  to  rejoice  fully  and  without  reserva- 
tion in  the  success  of  others  is  a  happy  achievement, 
within  the  reach  of  all.  To  envy  the  ability  or  suc- 
cess of  another  is  a  very  stupid  and  serious  blunder. 
Are  we  not  all  in  this  church  work  together  ?  When 
one  is  honored,  all  are  honored.  When  one  succeeds, 
all  succeed.  Every  strong  and  true  man  or  woman 
that  the  church  develops  is  so  much  gain  to  all  of  us. 
Instead  of  envying  such  a  man  his  prowess,  we 
should  hail  him  as  a  fighting  comrade.  He  will  help 
us  to  solve  the  problems  that  confront  us.  He  helps 


The  Sin  of  Jealousy  95 

us  to  hold  our  own  defense  against  a  hostile  world. 
By  him  we  are  all  made  secure.  His  strength  adds  so 
much  to  the  sum  total  of  the  strength  of  the  church. 
We  all  fight  forward  a  little  to  the  spot  where  he  has 
planted  the  colors.  We  gain  a  little  ground.  Thank 
God.  Send  us  more  such  men.  Cursed  be  the  hand 
that  would  pull  the  colors  down  because  the  color 
bearer  is  disliked. 

In  every  branch,  district,  stake,  Sunday  school,  Re- 
ligio,  or  any  department  of  church  work  whatsoever, 
the  effort  should  be  made  unreservedly  to  help  one 
another,  to  develop  and  foster  talent,  and  to  give  to 
each  the  best  possible  opportunity  to  work.  The 
field  is  broad  and  there  is  room  for  all. 


THE   DEIFICATION    OF    HUMANITY 

(Sermon  at  Lamoni,  Iowa.) 

"Glory  to  Man  in  the  highest, 

For  Man  is  the  Master  of  Things." 

rT^HE  sentiment  of  the  two  lines  quoted  strikes 
hard  upon  the  sensibilities  of  the  reverent. 
But  this  is  not  a  reverent  age. 

They  serve  to  close  a  little  pamphlet  on  Direct 
Action,  published  by  the  anarchist  press  (The  Mother 
Earth  Publishing  Association,  New  York  City.)  You 
know  what  "direct  action"  is.  The  McNamaras  prac- 
ticed "direct  action"  on  the  Times  Building. 

The  words  are  ascribed  to  Swinburne,  and  no 
doubt  embody  the  thought  of  men  who  are  supposed 
to  be  much  more  respectable  than  anarchists. 

Brigham  Young  tried  to  put  Adam  in  the  place  of 
God,  saying  that  he  is  our  God  and  the  only  God 
with  whom  we  have  to  do.  He  also  announced  the 
idea  that  men  may  become  gods  by  progression  and 
exaltation;  that  as  God  is  now  we  shall  be,  at  some 
distant  time  in  the  future. 

But  this  goes  a  step  beyond  Brigham  Young,  and 
says  that  man,  with  all  his  weaknesses  and  sins,  is 
god  right  now,  and  the  only  deity,  and  highest  in- 
telligence in  the  universe : 

96 


The  Deification  of  Humanity  97 

"Glory  to  Man  in  the  Highest, 
For  he  is  Master  of  Things." 

THE  OLD  POET  AND  THE  MODERN  POET 

Now  of  course  it  goes  without  saying  that  this 
kind  of  teaching  is  squarely  in  conflict  with  the  old 
divine  edict.  Opposed  to  the  notion  of  the  modern 
poet,  carried  away  by  a  little  transient  human  glory, 
is  the  sentiment  of  the  inspired  ancient  poet: 

"Cursed  be  the  man  that  trusteth  in  man, 
And  maketh  flesh  his  arm, 
Whose  heart  departeth  from  the  Lord. 
Blessed  is  the  man  that  trusteth  in  the  Lord, 
And  whose  hope  the  Lord  is." 

One  speaks  forth  the  spirit  of  the  old  religious 
age.  The  other  embodies  the  blatant  spirit  of  this 
age  of  materialism.  The  old  way  is  the  best  way. 

"Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Stand  ye  in  the  ways,  and 
see,  and  ask  for  the  old  paths,  where  is  the  good 
way,  and  walk  therein,  and  ye  shall  find  rest  for  your 
souls.    But  they  said,  We  will  not  walk  therein."- 
Jeremiah. 

In  the  days  of  Grecian  mythology,  when  there 
were  almost  as  many  gods  as  a  man  could  count  in 
a  day,  one  of  the  old  cynics  of  those  times  said :  "It 
is  easier  to  find  a  god  in  Athens  than  it  is  to  find  a 
man."  Of  course  .he  meant  real  man,  and  perhaps 
his  statement  was  true. 

A  modern  cynic,  speaking  of  our  modern  man, 
4 


98  Square  Blocks 

says  that  he  is  "self -made,  and  worships  his  creator." 
Perhaps  that  statement  also  is  true. 

Many  business  men,  and  others,  solely  interested 
in  the  development  of  material  things  by  human 
effort,  under  human  administration,  give  no  thought 
at  all  to  God.  He  does  not  enter  into  their  considera- 
tion. They  recognize  no  law-giving  power  higher 
than  organized  society.  They  obey  no  law  other  than 
man-made  law,  and  too  often  do  not  fully  obey  that. 

Added  to  these  are  all  classes  of  infidels  and  free 
thinkers  who  have  frankly  ruled  God  out  of  existence 
(in  their  own  minds),  and  recognize  no  intelligence 
higher  than  human  intelligence. 

MASKED  ATHEISM 

Then  there  are  those  whose  teachings  are  more 
masked.  Their  reasonings  are  more  obscure  and 
devious,  but  they  arrive  at  the  same  ultimate  con- 
clusion. We  refer  to  men  of  that  growing  school  of 
thought  who  affirm  that  there  are  no  fixed  standards 
of  right  and  wrong;  that  the  consensus  of  human 
opinion  makes  a  thing  right  or  wrong;  that  there  is 
no  higher  power  that  has  authority  to  say  that  a 
thing  is  right  or  wrong.  In  line  with  this  thought 
came  Professor  Eliot's  announcement  some  years 
ago  that  the  religion  of  the  future  will  not  be  a  re- 
ligion of  authority ;  that  it  will  be  such  a  religion  as 
may  meet  the  general  approval  of  men,  not  resting 
on  revelation  or  divine  commandment. 

Under  such  a  "religious  democracy"  man  might 
add  to,  take  from,  remodel,  or  make  his  religion  over 


The  Deification  of  Humanity  99 

entirely  new.    He  would  be  in  fact  his  own  lawgiver, 
revelator,  and  God — "Glory  to  Man  in  the  highest." 

GLORY  TO  GOD  IN  THE  HIGHEST 

We  as  a  people  fully  realize  the  futility  of  such  a 
boast.  Human  wisdom  at  this  very  hour  is  face  to 
face  with  problems  that  confuse  the  nations  and 
cause  consternation  in  the  hearts  of  thoughtful 
men.  Whether  the  way  out  leads  through  reforma- 
tion or  revolution  no  one  knows.  Whether  it  leads 
to  higher  achievement  or  to  racial  chaos  is  a  debated 
question. 

There  never  was  a  time  in  all  history  when  there 
was  greater  need  for  men  to  confess  the  supremacy 
of  God  and  obey  all  his  laws;  yet  this  age  says: 
"Away  with  God.  We  will  solve  our  own  problems 
and  make  our  own  laws." 

God  alone  has  the  solution  to  our  world  problems 
of  to-day.  Man  is  not  the  master  of  things.  He  has 
never  learned  to  rule  himself  and  shape  his  own 
destiny. 

God  has  said  that  as  the  heavens  are  higher  than 
the  earth,  so  are  his  ways  higher  than  man's  ways. 
With  all  due  respect  to  the  notable  achievements  of 
man  in  material  things,  we  still  indorse  that  senti- 
ment, and  with  the  angels  sing:  "Glory  to  God  in 
the  highest." 

MAN'S  WEAKNESS  ;  GOD'S  INFINITUDE 

Man  boasts,  in  the  language  of  Tennyson,  that  he 
is  the  heir  of  all  ages.  And  so  he  is.  But  we  inherit 
things  evil  as  well  as  things  good.  From  the  days 


100  Square  Blocks 

of  Adam  until  to-day  each  individual  has  dropped  his 
little  pebble  of  sin  into  the  waters,  and  to-day  society 
feels  the  accumulated  shock. 

But  God's  heritage  is  all  good.  He  is  light  and  in 
him  there  is  no  darkness  at  all.  He  is  love  and  in 
him  there  is  no  bitterness  and  malice. 

IN  THE  REALM  OF  ART 

When  we  enter  the  field  of  man's  proudest  en- 
deavor and  contrast  his  achievements  with  the  works 
of  God,  we  learn  a  salutary  lesson  concerning  man's 
weakness  and  limitations  and  God's  infinitude  and 
power. 

In  the  realm  of  art  we  admire  the  achievements 
of  the  great  masters.  But  after  all,  when  man  has 
spread  his  pigments  upon  canvas,  the  picture,  though 
glowing  with  the  semblance  of  life,  is  frozen  and 
dead.  The  grasses  do  not  ripple  in  the  breeze;  the 
waves  do  not  break  upon  the  beach.  But  God's  great 
landscapes  are  full  of  life,  motion,  and  change.  From 
morning  until  night  and  from  season  to  season  their 
wonderful  transformations  are  a  perpetual  delight. 

When  the  human  artist  has  finished  his  canvas, 
decay  immediately  sets  in.  Though  it  may  not  be 
observed  at  once,  the  colors  begin  to  fade,  the  canvas 
begins  to  rot.  But  God's  great  landscapes  renew 
themselves  from  generation  to  generation,  forever 
and  forever. 

Man  may  work  for  years  upon  a  block  of  marble, 
fashioning  it  with  wonderful  skill,  until  when  com- 
pleted it  is  absolutely  perfect  in  line  and  proportion ; 


The  Deification  of  Humanity  101 

more  perfect  perhaps  than  the  average  human  form 
of  this  age ;  but  there  his  work  ends.  And  where  his 
work  ends  God's  greatest  work  began.  For,  having 
completed  the  perfect  form  of  man,  he  "breathed  into 
his  nostrils  the  breath  of  life ;  and  man  became  a  liv- 
ing soul." 

WONDERFUL  INVENTIONS 

We  talk  about  wonderful  inventions.  They  are 
wonderful,  too.  But  it  is  said  that  nearly  every  me- 
chanical principle  that  we  use  is  borrowed  from 
nature.  For  instance,  the  ball  and  socket  joint  is 
found  in  the  human  shoulder;  the  lens  of  the  tele- 
scope exists  in  the  human  eye.  The  despised  mosquito 
has  a  set  of  drills  and  pumps.  On  my  desk  there 
lies  a  stone  picked  up  on  the  seashore.  It  is  drilled 
straight  through  with  a  perfectly  round  hole  a 
quarter  of  an  inch  across.  Some  insignificant  worm 
drilled  that  hole.  And  worms  drilled  holes  through 
solid  rocks  before  man  began  to  drill  tunnels.  The 
bee  made  his  perfect  cell  before  man  studied  geome- 
try. God  was  the  first  inventor. 

We  have  great  machines  that  "almost  seem  to 
think."  But  they  do  not  think,  and  each  of  them 
must  be  presided  over  by  human  intelligence.  If  the 
man  who  made  the  machine  is  great,  how  much 
greater  the  God  who  made  the  man  who  made  the 
machine.  No  machine,  however  complex  and  wonder- 
ful, can  for  a  moment  compare  as  an  invention  with 
the  human  body,  with  its  great  citadel  of  thought 
and  reason  in  the  brain. 


102  Square  Blocks 

SCIENCE 

We  have  achieved  some  remarkable  victories  of 
science  over  superstition.  The  study  of  science  is  a 
search  for  truth,  and  as  such  is  a  noble  calling,  and 
should  be  a  consecrated  calling,  combining  faith  and 
study.  But  it  has  not  been  consecrated.  And  many 
great  demonstrated  truths  are  mingled  with  masses 
of  theory.  The  history  of  the  past  leads  us  to 
suspect  that  another  generation  may  witness  the  ex- 
posure of  the  fallacy  of  some  things  that  we  hold  to 
be  absolute  scientific  truths. 

Then  there  is  so  much  that  cannot  be  fathomed! 
What  gave  the  planets  their  initial  impulse?  What 
force  first  started  their  great  bulk  in  motion  with 
such  a  mighty  thrust  that  they  still  fly  on  with  un- 
diminished  speed?  We  do  not  know.  To  express  it 
crudely,  we  cannot  tell  whether  it  was  a  push  or  a 
pull.  Science  may  theorize  on  this,  as  on  the  origin 
of  life  itself,  but  the  innermost  secrets  of  these  great 
acts  in  the  opening  drama  of  existence  are  known  to 
God,  and  man  can  never  learn  them,  excepting  as 
God  reveals  them  to  him. 

THE  LESSON 

In  the  wasted  and  perverted  degenerate,  we  see 
man  at  his  lowest.  In  those  great  men,  such  as 
Lincoln  and  Gladstone,  we  see  man  at  his  highest  (so 
far  as  the  world  is  concerned) .  The  lowest  are  just 
a  little  higher  than  the  Devil  himself ;  the  highest  are 
a  little  lower  than  the  angels.  But  when  we  run  the 
scale  of  humanity,  from  the  lowest  to  the  highest, 


The  Deification  of  Humanity  103 

we  do  not  find  anywhere  a  man  who  is  more  than  a 
very  imperfect  and  partial  representation  of  Deity. 
Lincoln,  though  filled  with  power  and  integrity,  as  we 
see  him  caught  in  that  mighty  struggle  of  which  he 
was  the  storm  center,  and  all  but  overthrown,  is 
somewhat  pathetic.  At  best  he  was  not  a  god,  but 
only  an  instrument  in  the  hands  of  God,  or  one  who 
cooperated  with  God.  And  the  same  is  true  of  the 
best  men  of  all  ages  and  nations. 

And  that  is  man's  province — to  cooperate  with 
God.  He  cannot  be  a  god ;  but  he  can  be  a  friend  of 
God.  We  hold  that  the  highest  development  of 
man  will  be  found  in  recognition  of  and  obedience  to 
God. 

That  is  the  lesson.  We  can  still  afford  to  trust 
God  to  administer  the  affairs  of  man.  We  can  still 
be  thankful  that  there  is  a  great  God  to  rule  the  uni- 
verse, and  that  it  is  our  privilege  to  learn  of  him  and 
keep  his  commandments.  As  the  wise  man  said: 

"Let  us  hear  the  conclusion  of  the  whole  matter: 
Fear  God,  and  keep  his  commandments:  for  this  is 
the  whole  duty  of  man." 

"Glory  to  GOD  in  the  highest." 


MARRIAGE  AXD   THE   HOME 

"Marriage  has  in  it  less  of  beauty,  but  more  of  safety, 
than  the  single  life;  it  hath  not  more  ease,  but  less  danger; 
it  is  more  merry  and  more  sad;  it  is  fuller  of  sorrows  and 
fuller  of  joys;  it  lies  under  more  burdens,  but  it  is  supported 
by  all  the  strength  of  love  and  charity;  and  these  burdens 
are  delightful.  Marriage  is  the  mother  of  the  world,  and 
preserves  kingdoms,  and  fills  cities  and  churches,  and  heaven 
itself."' — Jeremy  Taylor. 

NEST    BUILDING 

WHEN  two  birds  mate  in  the  springtime  it 
might  be  supposed  that  they  would  be  con- 
tent to  float  away  on  rainbow  tinted  clouds 
of  connubial  bliss.  Not  so.  They  get  right  down  to 
the  business  of  nest  building.  They  work  and  sing 
and  are  busy  and  happy  because  nest  building  is  the 
happiest  and  most  important  thing  in  the  world. 
Everything  is  subordinated  to  the  work  at  hand.  If 
necessary,  the  mother  bird  plucks  the  down  from  her 
own  breast  to  line  the  new  home.  Women  who  put 
dress  first  and  home  second  are  not  so  wise  as  the 
jenny  wren. 

Naturally  there  comes  a  time  in  the  life  of  every 
man  when  he  falls  in  love  with  some  woman.  The 
world  laughs  at  him  then.  But  if  all  goes  well  he 
can  afford  to  laugh  at  the  world.  Presently  orange 
blossoms  open.  Wedding  bells  ring.  The  blushing 

104 


Marriage  and  the  Home  105 

bride  occupies  the  center  of  the  stage,  clad  in  raiment 
that  no  mere  man  can  describe.  The  groom,  in  "con- 
ventional black,"  occupies  a  subordinate  position  a 
little  at  one  side,  and  often  wishes  that  it  were  even 
less  conspicuous.  The  minister  says  the  magic, 
some  would  say  the  fatal  words,  that  make  the  two 
one — and  collects  his  fee.  The  wedding  feast  is  eaten. 
The  guests  depart.  The  music  dies  away.  The  two  are 
left  face  to  face  with  the  serious  problems  of  life. 

If  this  union  is  to  be  permanent  and  happy,  there 
is  nothing  more  important  at  this  juncture  than 
homemaking.  This  is  an  age  in  which  the  majority  of 
the  people  do  not  own  their  homes.  Such  a  condition 
is  unfortunate.  In  the  ideal  society  every  man  will 
own  his  home — every  man,  that  is,  who  cares  enough 
for  a  home  to  work  for  it  and  save  for  it;  and  it 
goes  without  saying  that  in  the  ideal  society  all  will 
be  of  that  class.  The  fact  that  the  majority  of  the 
people  do  not  own  their  homes  is  of  sinister  import. 
It  may  be  due  in  part  to  economic  conditions,  and  in 
part  to  extravagance  and  intemperance.  The  latter 
causes  should  be  eliminated  from  the  lives  of  Latter 
Day  Saints.  It  should  be  their  ambition  to  own  their 
homes  where  conditions  are  such  that  it  is  at  all  pos- 
sible for  them  to  do  so. 

SUITABLE    HOMES 

Homes  should  be  adequate  and  comfortable.  In 
1908  President  Roosevelt  appointed  a  commission  to 
investigate  conditions  in  penal  and  charitable  insti- 


106 Square  Blocks 

tutions  in  the  city  of  Washington  and  the  District 
of  Columbia.    This  commission  reported : 

"The  problem  of  crime  among  the  people  cannot 
be  considered  apart  from  the  general  problem  of 
their  housing  and  their  surroundings.  It  is  impos- 
sible to  understand  any  man  apart  from  his  sur- 
roundings and  especially  apart  from  what  he  calls 
his  home.  Most  of  these  people  who  find  their  way 
into  the  criminal  court  and  eventually  into  prison, 
may  be  traced  back  to  the  miserable  alleys  and  hovels 
which  exist  in  such  large  numbers  in  our  city  and 
which  are  a  reproach  to  our  civilization.  No  one  who 
knows  how  these  people  live  wonders  at  their  habits 
or  their  crimes.  While  we  are  striving  for  penal  and 
reformatory  institutions  worthy  of  our  people  and 
our  time,  let  us  not  neglect  to  remove  these  breed- 
ing places  of  vice  and  schools  of  crime,  and  put  in 
their  place  clean  and  wholesome  dwellings." 

Society  can  undertake  no  work  more  important 
than  to  aid  in  every  legitimate  way  the  worthy  and 
industrious  to  secure  suitable  homes.  Extreme  pov- 
erty and  extreme  wealth  are  both  alike  a  menace  to 
good  citizenship.  We  do  not  grow  the  great  staple 
crops  that  feed  humanity  in  barren  and  sandy 
wastes,  nor  yet  in  excessively  fertilized  hotbeds.  We 
grow  them  in  moderately  fertile  open  fields.  The 
best  citizens  are  not  grown  in  the  barren  wastes  of 
poverty,  nor  in  the  luxurious  hotbeds  of  wealth,  but 
in  homes  where  the  necessities  of  life  are  adequately 
supplied  and  luxury  unknown. 

Not  idly  did  Agur  pray :  "Give  me  neither  poverty 


Marriage  and  the  Home  107 

nor  riches ;  feed  me  with  food  convenient  for  me :  lest 
I  be  full,  and  deny  thee,  and  say,  Who  is  the  Lord? 
or  lest  I  be  poor,  and  steal,  and  take  the  name  of  my 
God  in  vain/'— Proverbs  3 :  8,  9. 

"TAKE  NOT  SO  SHORT  A  TIME 

Now  for  the  two  chief  characters  who  are  to 
occupy  in  this  home  of  which  we  speak.  Their  alli- 
ance should  not  be  formed  with  too  great  haste. 
Back  of  the  divorce  court  at  which  so  many  rail  is 
the  hasty  marriage  which  so  many  overlook  entirely. 
One  lecturer  pictures  certain  modern  mating  thus: 
The  phone  rings.  The  young  lady  answers.  A  voice 
says,  "Will  you  marry  me?"  She  answers,  "Yes! 
Who  is  it?" 

This  is  a  reversal  of  the  logical  sequence  of  the 
question  and  the  answer.  The  question,  Who  is  it? 
should  have  some  months  the  start  of  the  answer, 
Yes. 

In  these  days,  when  a  young  man  just  out  of  col- 
lege enters  a  bank  with  head  up  and  chest  inflated 
and  informs  the  bank  president  that  he  has  decided 
to  accept  the  position  of  head  cashier,  the  banker 
whirls  on  him  and  asks  a  few  pointed  questions :  "Do 
you  gamble?  Do  you  smoke?  Do  you  drink?  Are 
you  afraid  to  work?" 

If  the  young  man  cannot  answer  no  to  these  in- 
terrogations, presently  he  goes  out  with  head  down 
and  chest  deflated. 

Surely  a  woman  should  be  as  exacting  as  a  bank 
president.  She  has  so  much  more  at  stake !  Shake- 


108  Square  Blocks 

speare  says:  "Take  not  so  short  a  time  to  make  a 
world-wide  bargain  in." 

On  the  other  hand,  the  young  man  should  be 
reasonably  sure  that  he  is  getting  a  woman  who  will 
do  her  share  in  helping  to  make  a  home — one  who  is 
not  afraid  to  work  when  necessary  and  has  the  sav- 
ing grace  of  common  sense.  In  these  days  of  strenu- 
ous high  school  and  college  courses  little  time  is  left 
for  girls  to  acquire  the  arts  that  made  their  grand- 
mothers famous  as  housekeepers.  It  is  perhaps  too 
much  to  ask  that  they  enter  upon  married  life  fully 
equipped  with  a  working  knowledge  of  housekeeping. 
But  a  man  need  not  worry  if  he  is  sure  that  his 
chosen  companion  has  the  home-making  tempera- 
ment ;  if  she  is  a  potential  home  maker  she  will  soon 
solve  the  problems  that  confront  her,  just  as  he 
from  year  to  year  must  work  out  problems  of  bread 
winning  that  he  knew  little  about  when  he  made  his 
start  in  life. 

THE    FLEDGLINGS 

Naturally  in  time  other  actors  appear  upon  the 
scene.  Longfellow  pictures  the  wedding  festivities 
in  his  poem,  "Hanging  of  the  crane."  (In  the  good 
old  days  they  used  to  hang  the  crane  in  the  new 
home.  To-day  in  some  homes  they  hang  the  stork.) 
Looking  ahead  a  few  years  from  the  wedding  day  he 
says: 

"Seated,  I  see  the  two  again 
But  not  alone;  they  entertain 
A  little  angel  unaware, 


Marriage  and  the  Home  109 

With  face  as  round  as  is  the  moon, 
A  royal  guest  with  flaxen  hair, 
Who,  throned  upon  his  lofty  chair, 
I)rums  on  the  table  with  his  spoon, 
*^hen  drops  it  careless  on  the  floor, 
To  grasp  at  things  unseen  before. 
Are  these  celestial  manners?  these 
The  ways  that  win,  the  arts  that  please? 
Ah  yes;  consider  well  the  guest, 
And  whatso'er  he  does  seems  best." 

The  young  of  the  human  race  are  born  more  help- 
less than  the  young  of  any  of  the  animals.  The  little 
babe  is  absolutely  powerless.  He  comes  into  the 
world  without  even  a  change  of  clothing  and  without 
money  enough  to  pay  for  a  night's  lodging.  But 
fortunately  he  brings  with  him  something  that 
makes  up  for  every  other  deficiency — the  power  to 
reach  out  and  take  hold  of  human  hearts  as  nothing 
else  in  the  world  does.  When  those  little  fingers 
close  over  the  parent  hand,  nature  attends  to  the  rest 
and  the  little  mendicant  becomes  a  king. 

Then  the  home  begins  to  perform  more  fully  its 
functions.  It  becomes  the  nesting  place  of  the  fledg- 
lings. 

CELIBACY ;  GOD  VERSUS  PAUL 

In  the  past,  two  erroneous  ideas  have  been  enter- 
tained regarding  marriage.  A  great  many  people, 
particularly  members  of  certain  religious  sects,  have 
advocated  and  practiced  celibacy.  Their  teachings 
have  taken  the  color  of  authority  from  the  writings 
of  Paul,  particularly  the  seventh  chapter  of  1  Co- 


110  Square  Blocks 

rinthians.  Paul  makes  but  one  concession  to  mar- 
riage. He  says :  "It  is  better  to  marry  than  to  burn." 
Of  two  dreadful  alternatives  he  would  prefer  mar- 
riage to  burning. 

But  we  should  notice  particularly  that  Paul  is  at 
pains  to  state  at  four  different  times  in  this  chapter 
that  he  is  giving  his  own  opinion  and  not  the  opinion 
of  God.  Paul  was  a  man  who  said  that  he  had 
learned  to  be  content  in  whatsoever  condition  he 
found  himself.  He  found  himself  single  and  was 
satisfied  to  remain  single.  Had  he  married  he  might 
have  written  a  chapter  different  from  the  one  that 
we  are  considering. 

There  is  no  warrant  in  the  Word  of  God  for  the 
thought  that  marriage  is  an  unholy  state ;  or  for  the 
more  common  thought  that  though  not  unholy  it  is 
a  lower  state  than  celibacy  and  that  God  especially 
rewards  those  who  do  not  marry.  God  said  in  the 
beginning  that  it  was  not  good  for  man  to  be  alone. 

POLYGAMY ;  DAVID  AND  SOLOMON  VERSUS  GOD 

Others  have  gone  to  the  opposite  extreme  and  have 
taught  and  practiced  polygamy.  David  and  Solomon 
practiced  it,  and  some  have  thought  that  because  of 
that  God  approved  of  it.  But  these  kings  of  Israel 
practiced  it,  not  in  obedience  to  the  law  of  God,  but 
contrary  to  the  law.  The  law  said :  "Neither  shall  he 
multiply  wives  to  himself." 

God  was  in  no  way  responsible  for  acts  committed 
in  direct  violation  of  his  law.  In  the  light  of  this  the 
Book  of  Mormon  is  correct  when  it  says  that  the  con- 


Marriage  and  the  Home  111 

duct  of  David  and  Solomon  in  this  particular  was 
abominable  in  the  sight  of  God. 

THE   TRUE  LAW 

Probably  the  most  explicit  commandments  regard- 
ing marriage  are  found  in  latter-day  revelation. 
Celibacy  and  polygamy  are  both  mentioned  in  the 
Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants :  "Whoso  forbiddeth 
to  marry,  is  not  ordained  of  God,  for  marriage  is  or- 
dained of  God  unto  man;  wherefore  it  is  lawful  that 
he  should  have  one  wife  and  they  tivain  shall  be  one 
flesh." — Doctrine  and  Covenants  49 :  3. 

It  appears  from  this  that  marriage  is  natural  and 
ordained  of  God,  and  that  those  who  teach  to  the 
contrary  are  not  ordained  of  him.  Marriage  must, 
then,  be  something  more  than  a  civil  contract,  to  be 
annulled  at  the  will  of  the  contracting  parties.  And 
it  is  limited  to  "they  twain."  A  man  may  have  one 
wife.  They  two  shall  be  one  flesh. 

Beautiful  instruction  is  found  in  the  following: 
"Thou  shalt  love  thy  wife  with  all  thy  heart,  and 
shall  cleave  unto  her  and  none  else." — Doctrine  and 
Covenants  42 :  7. 

We  may  conclude  that  marriage  is  the  highest  and 
best  estate  of  man  in  this  world,  being  approved  of 
God,  he  having  presided  at  the  first  marriage  of  man 
and  woman  and  having  laid  down  the  law  to  govern 
marriage.  Any  departure  from  that  law  is  fraught 
with  grave  danger  to  the  individual  and  society. 
Home  is  the  place  where  married  life  finds  its  best 


112  Square  Blocks 

expression.  Any  institution  or  tendency  that 
threatens  the  integrity  of  the  home  is  a  menace  to 
the  individual,  to  the  church,  and  to  society. 


CREATION   IN  TRAVAIL 

(Extract  from  an  address  delivered  at  the  Stone  Church, 
Independence,  Missouri,  November  17,  1918.) 

WAITING  THE  MANIFESTATION  OF  THE  SONS  OF  GOD 

I  WISH  to  transpose  two  passages  that  appear  in 
the  8th  chapter  of  Romans.    "For  we  know  that 
the  whole  creation  groaneth  and  travaileth  in 
pain    together  until  now.  .  .  .  For  the  earnest  ex- 
pectation of  the  creature  waiteth  for  the  manifesta- 
tions of  the  sons  of  God." 

It  is  a  serious  matter  to  stand  before  you  as  the 
spokesman  of  the  church  at  a  time  like  this.  The 
subject  that  I  had  previously  selected  was  taken 
from  my  mind  and  another  subject  that  seemed  to 
me  to  come  like  a  ray  of  light  from  above  was  given 
to  me.  I  crave  the  help  of  God  that  I  may  unfold 
it  for  your  consideration.  It  is  compassed  in  this 
text.  I  will  restate  it  in  my  own  words.  The  whole 
creation  groaneth  and  travaileth  together  in  pain 
until  now,  waiting  for  the  manifestation  of  the  sons 
of  God. 

IS  THE  TEXT  DOLOROUS? 

You  may  wonder  why  I  should  come  before  you 
with  a  text,  the  first  part  of  which,  at  least,  is  dolor- 
ous in  its  language;  though  the  last  part  of  it  is 
most  glorious  in  its  promise.  It  is  because,  as  I  view 

113 


114  Square  Blocks 

it,  the  sound  of  those  whistles  recently  announcing 
peace  marked  only  the  close  of  one  chapter  in  the 
great  struggle  of  creation  in  the  closing  scenes  of 
time.  It  is  but  the  end  of  an  episode,  and  by  no 
means  the  end  of  the  story  of  travail  and  pain  that 
precedes  the  manifestation  of  the  sons  of  God. 

Now,  let  us  analyze  the  text.  The  whole  creation 
groaneth  and  travaileth  in  pain  together  until  now. 
I  do  not  know  how  inclusive  this  statement  may  be 
concerning  the  whole  creation.  It  is  intimated  in 
the  Book  of  Covenants  that  there  are  innumerable 
worlds,  and  we  do  not  know  how  many  of  them  are 
caught  in  the  travail  that  is  destined  finally  to  re- 
veal the  sons  of  God.  It  is  told  us  in  the  36th  section 
of  the  Doctrine  and  Covenants  that  when  Enoch  had 
his  wonderful  vision  and  saw  the  condition  of  men 
through  all  the  ages  he  saw  that  God  wept,  and  the 
bosom  of  eternity  was  pained ;  and  he  wondered  how 
it  was  that  God  could  weep.  We  are  told  also  that 
the  angels  rejoice  when  sinners  repent;  and  doubt- 
less they  mourn  when  men  fail. 

We  do  not  know  how  universal  this  travail  may 
be,  but  at  least  we  are  sure  that  for  years  past  it 
has  included  all  of  this  world. 

EARTH  HOLLOW  WITH  GRAVES 

Peace  has  come,  but  at  what  a  struggle  has  it  been 
achieved;  and  what  a  price  has  been  paid!  It  is 
estimated  that  there  are  twenty  million  dead  as  a 
result  of  this  war.  It  is  true,  as  never  before,  in  the 
language  of  Tennyson,  that  "Earth  is  crimson  with 


Creation  in  Travail  115 

battles  and  hollow  with  graves."  The  jubilee  that 
we  had  last  Monday  has  not  restored  the  broken 
homes  that  this  war  is  responsible  for.  There  is 
mourning  and  pain  and  travail  the  world  over. 

I  used  to  have  a  sermon  on  the  signs  of  the  times, 
and  I  had  a  great  many  statistics;  but  I  haven't 
preached  that  sermon  for  three  or  four  years  now. 
What  is  the  use?  My  statistics  are  colorless  in  the 
light  of  the  struggle  just  closed.  The  signs  of  the 
times  preach  for  themselves.  But  this  point  I  wish 
to  reiterate — that  this  is  but  the  closing  of  one  chap- 
ter in  the  story. 

The  menace  of  autocracy  has  been  removed.  In 
Europe  the  place  of  it  is  taken  by  the  red  flag  of 
anarchy,  which  is  just  as  dangerous  as  the  black 
eagle  of  the  Prussians  ever  was.  Russia  is  in  chaos. 
So  is  Austria  and  Turkey,  and  Germany,  to  a  lesser 
degree.  The  red  flag  of  anarchy  has  shown  itself  in 
Holland,  Sweden,  Switzerland,  France,  and  the 
United  States,  and  showed  itself  in  this  land  at  the 
beginning  of  this  war,  so  that  we  know  what  may 
occur  if  the  opportunity  ever  presents  itself.  And 
that  prophecy  that  I  referred  to  some  time  ago  (sec- 
tion 45  of  the  Book  of  Covenants)  yet  remains  to  be 
fulfilled.  I  refer  to  the  statement  that  the  time  will 
come  when  those  who  will  not  take  up  their  swords 
against  their  neighbors  must  flee  to  Zion,  and  that 
they  shall  be  the  only  people  under  heaven  that  shall 
not  be  at  war,  one  with  another. 

I  do  not  believe  that  refers  to  any  war  that  has 


116  Square  Blocks 

occurred,  or  to  any  international  war  that  will  oc- 
cur. To  my  mind,  it  refers  to  a  condition  of  an- 
archy, when  order  and  government  will  break  down 
in  our  own  country,  and  neighbors  be  arrayed 
against  neighbors,  and  we  must  flee  to  Zion  if  we 
wish  to  have  safety.  A  good  old  brother  told  me  just 
a  few  days  ago  that  he  saw  that  condition  in  vision, 
and  he  said  that  when  it  came  the  Saints  had  no  need 
to  mix  in  the  conflict  unless  they  wished  to  do  so. 
This  time  we  couldn't  avoid  it.  We  must  not  conclude 
that  the  millennium  has  dawned  simply  because 
Hindenburg  may  be  eating  straw  just  at  present,  and 
the  Kaiser  has  gone  to  lie  down  with  the  lambs  of 
Holland. 

THE  WORLD  IS  WAITING 

In  this  text  the  statement  is  made  that  the  whole 
creation  groaneth  together  in  travail,  and  pain, 
waiting — waiting  for  something.  There  is  a  feeling 
of  expectancy  in  the  world.  For  years  past,  even  be- 
fore the  war  began,  there  was  a  feeling  of  waiting 
for  something.  There  are  a  great  many  people  who 
are  waiting,  as  the  Master  said,  in  fear,  their  hearts 
failing  them  for  fear,  for  looking  upon  the  things 
coming  upon  the  earth. 

There  is  a  significant  statement  in  the  Doctrine 
and  Covenants,  right  along  that  line,  section  45 :  4 : 
"And  in  that  day  shall  be  heard  of  wars  and  rumors 
of  wars,  and  the  ivhole  earth  shall  be  in  commotion, 
and  men's  hearts  shall  fail  them,  and  they  shall  say 


Creation  in  Travail  117 

that  Christ  delayeth  his  coming  until  the  end  of  the 
earth." 

On  the  other  hand,  there  are  a  great  many  who 
are  looking  and  waiting  in  faith  and  expectation. 
As  the  Master  said,  "When  ye  see  these  things  begin 
to  come  to  pass,  lift  up  your  hearts  and  rejoice,  for 
ye  know  that  the  day  of  your  redemption  draweth 
nigh."  In  the  light  of  the  text,  what  is  it  that  we 
have  been  waiting  for?  The  whole  creation  groan- 
eth  and  travaileth  together  in  pain,  waiting  for— 
what — for.  the  manifestation  of  the  sons  of  God. 
That  question  is  answered;  another  immediately 
arises — who  are  the  sons  of  God? 

WHO  ARE  THE  SONS  OF  GOD? 

I  have  heard  the  doctrine  propounded  by  liberal 
people  that  all  men  are  the  sons  of  God,  and  that 
all  men  are  brothers.  That  doctrine  may  seem  very 
liberal,  but  it  is  not  true  except  in  a  very  limited 
sense.  All  men  are  sons  of  God  and  all  men  are 
brothers  by  creation,  but  creation  is  a  long  time  past. 
Humanity  has  traded  its  birthright  for  one  kind  or 
another  of  pottage  on  many  an  occasion,  until  the 
statement  is  made  that  all  have  gone  out  of  the  way. 

Who  are  the  sons  of  God  ?  We  are  told  in  Romans 
8: 14,  "as  many  as  are  led  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  they 
are  the  sons  of  God."  And  in  John  1 :  12  the  state- 
ment is  made,  "As  many  as  received  him,  to  them 
gave  he  power  to  become  the  sons  of  God."  Those, 
then,  who  do  the  will  of  God  receive  power  to  be- 
come the  sons  of  God.  We  must  come  back  to  him 


118  Square  Blocks 

again,  before  we  can  be  called  his  sons,  and  be  re- 
ceived by  adoption. 

The  manifestation  of  the  sons  of  God  was  fore- 
shadowed in  the  prayer  of  the  Master,  "Thy  king- 
dom come,  thy  will  be  done,  on  earth  as  it  is  done 
in  heaven."  Those  are  the  sons  of  God,  then,  who 
are  willing  to  do  the  will  of  God  on  earth,  just  the 
same  as  their  brethren  in  the  spirit  are  doing  it  in 
heaven.  There  are  a  great  many  people  apparently 
anxious  to  enter  into  the  millennium  who  are  not 
sons  of  God.  They  trace  their  genealogy  along  an- 
other line. 

I  do  not  presume,  however,  for  a  moment  that  this 
little  body  of  people  called  the  Latter  Day  Saints,  as 
at  present  constituted,  is  all  that  will  be  revealed 
when  the  sons  of  God  stand  forth.  That  would  be 
too  narrow  a  conception.  I  believe  that  God  has  many 
righteous  men  in  the  earth,  and  many  forces  at  work, 
and  many  institutions  that  are  working  for  right- 
eousness that  perhaps  we  do  not  recognize,  and  cer- 
tainly many  individuals  who  are  unknown  to  us. 

The  statement  is  made,  that  he  will  send  his  an- 
gels to  gather  the  elect  from  the  four  corners  of 
the  earth.  There  is  something  more  in  the  Book  of 
Covenants  along  that  line,  too.  Let  me  read  it — 
section  36.  I  will  just  read  briefly  certain  sentences, 
and  not  take  the  time  to  read  all  that  bears  on  this 
subject.  "And  again,  Enoch  wept  and  cried  unto  the 
Lord,  saying,  When  shall  the  earth  rest?"  That  is 
a  very  significant  question.  "And  the  Lord  said 


Creation  in  Travail  119 

.  .  .  The  day  shall  come  that  the  earth  shall  rest,  but 
before  that  day, . . .  great  tribulations  shall  be  among 
the  children  of  men,  but  my  people  will  I  preserve; 
and  righteousness  will  I  send  down  out  of  heaven, 
and  truth  will  I  send  forth  out  of  the  earth,  .  .  .  and 
righteousness  and  truth  will  I  cause  to  sweep  the 
earth  as  with  a  flood,  to  gather  out  my  own  elect 
from  the  four  quarters  of  the  earth  unto  a  place 
which  I  shall  prepare." 

HOW  ARE  SONS  OF  GOD  MANIFESTED? 

Righteousness  and  truth  will  sweep  the  earth  and 
gather  out  the  elect,  the  sons  of  God.  That  is  my 
conception  of  the  gathering.  I  do  not  think  of  the 
gathering  as  a  group  of  people  driven  together  by 
fear  of  the  calamities  coming  upon  the  earth.  I 
think  of  it  as  an  aggregation  of  men  and  women 
drawn  together  by  the  love  of  righteousness  and 
truth.  These  great  principles  shining  forth  in  the 
church,  drawing  them  from  the  four  quarters  of  the 
earth;  and  I  am  glad  that  such  a  conception  is  re- 
vealed in  the  word  of  God. 

Who,  then,  are  the  elect?  Henry  Ward  Beecher 
very  bluntly  said,  "The  elect  are  those  who  will,  and 
the  nonelect  are  those  who  won't."  That  is  about  all 
there  is  to  the  doctrine  of  election  and  predestina- 
tion. One  shall  be  taken  and  another  left.  One  will 
obey.  Another  won't  obey.  One  has  in  his  heart 
the  love  of  this  righteousness  and  truth  that  shall 
sweep  the  earth.  He  is  ready  to  go  with  it.  The 
other  sticks  to  the  old  order  and  he  will  be  left. 


120  Square  Blocks 

I  may,  then,  ask  a  fair  question,  How  are  the  sons 
of  God  to  be  manifested  ?  I  think  they  will  be  mani- 
fested by  the  kind  of  lives  they  are  willing  to  live, 
and  by  their  allegiance.  John  tells  us  that  by  this 
are  the  children  of  God  manifested,  and  the  chil- 
dren of  the  Devil — that  the  children  of  God  work 
righteousness,  and  the  children  of  the  Devil  work 
unrighteousness.  And  we  are  told  concerning  Jesus, 
that  he  was  exalted  above  his  fellows  because  he 
loved  righteousness  and  hated  iniquity. 

The  sons  of  God  may  be  manifested  by  the  power 
and  the  intervention  of  God,  but  I  think  that  they 
will  be  manifested  also  in  the  kind  of  lives  they  live, 
perhaps  more  than  by  any  halo  of  light  that  will 
shine  around  their  heads.  And  no  individual  who 
has  a  lukewarm  attachment  for  righteousness,  and 
a  sneaking  admiration  for  iniquity  will  presently  be 
miraculously  manifested  as  a  son  of  God  simply 
because  he  has  his  name  inscribed  on  the  church 
record. 

A  WORLD  GETHSEMANE 

It  seems  that  there  must  be  an  individual  Geth- 
semane,  as  that  which  occurred  in  the  life  of  Christ. 
In  sorrow  and  pain  and  travail,  in  the  Garden  of 
Gethsemane,  Jesus  learned  to  say,  Not  my  will,  but 
thine  be  done.  His  sonship  was  confirmed  in  that 
last  lesson  in  which  he  learned  to  yield  himself  en- 
tirely to  the  will  of  God.  There  apparently  must 
also  be  a  world  Gethsemane;  the  whole  creation 
groaneth,  travailing  in  pain  until  now,  in  order  that 


Creation  in  Travail  121 

the  sons  of  God  may  be  revealed.  That  is  the  fru- 
ition. That  is  the  revelation,  the  culmination  of  all 
this  trouble,  sorrow,  anguish,  turmoil. 

That  is  what  it  is  all  leading  up  to — the  revela- 
tion of  the  sons  of  God,  when  Jesus  shall  come  and 
set  up  his  kingdom  with  all  those  who  are  willing 
to  do  his  will  on  earth  as  it  is  done  in  heaven.  In 
that  day  he  will  reign.  Peace  and  justice  will  pre- 
vail on  the  earth.  All  those  who  are  ready  to  re- 
ceive him  will  be  partakers  with  him. 


BLUE   PENCIL  NOTES 

GOD  wants  consecrated  men,  not  hired  men. 

With  an  artist,  an  eraser  is  quite  as  necessary  as 
a  pencil.  There  are  few  men  who  do  not  often  feel 
the  need  of  repentance. 

Very  long  sermons  require  plenty  of  "wind  and 
endurance."  The  preacher  needs  the  former  and  the 
audience  the  latter. 

A  good  sermon  is  a  balm  to  the  bruised  and  a  blis- 
ter to  the  calloused ;  it  has  a  message  of  rest  for  the 
weary  and  a  jab  in  the  ribs  for  the  lazy. 

Many  ponderous  tomes  eulogize  the  war-makers; 
but  Jesus   Christ  chose  to  apotheosize  the  peace- 
makers in  a  single  luminous  sentence  that  will  live 
forever. 
i 

Brother  X has  done  all  he  could  to  discourage 

the  elders  from  running  about  needlessly.  He  never 
gave  one  of  them  a  penny. 

Some  people  take  the  elder's  ministration  as  a 
matter  of  course,  not  worthy  even  of  thanks,  as  in 
the  case  of  the  invalid  to  whom  a  sister  said,  "Wasn't 

122 


Blue  Pencil  Notes  123 

it  kind  of  Elder  Fifthly  to  walk  six  miles  in  the  heat 
and  bring  you  that  big  basket  of  fruit  and  chicken 
and  groceries?"  The  lady  frowned  and  said,  "Kind? 
Why,  what  is  he  for?" 

No  brain  can  long  dictate  a  course  in  which  the 
heart  is  not  enlisted. 

The  law  of  the  land  may  stay  the  hand  in  mid-air 
and  say  that  you  must  not  steal  your  neighbor's 
money  or  his  wife  or  his  life.  The  law  of  God  checks 
the  heart  in  mid-bound  and  says  that  you  must  not 
covet  your  neighbor's  money  or  his  wife  or  his  life. 

A  Christian  Scientist  is  the  only  man  who  will 
deny  the  existence  of  matter  and  work  hard  to  earn 
coal,  ice,  and  flour;  who  will  act  as  pallbearer  for  a 
friend  and  on  the  way  home  deny  the  existence  of 
death. 

In  "Eve's  Diary"  Mark  Twain  makes  Eve  say  of 
Adam:  "He  is  self-educated,  and  does  really  know  a 
multitude  of  things,  but  they  are  not  so."  Adam, 
it  will  be  remembered,  is  the  father  of  all  men. 

An  expeditious  way  to  kill  a  young  people's 
prayer  meeting  is  to  let  the  old  people  move  in  and 
"improve  the  time." 

Look  out  for  the  economist  who  uses  thirty  min- 
utes of  the  prayer  meeting  because  he  "hates  to  see 


124  Square  Blocks 

the  time  go  to  waste."    It  is  wasted — but  he  doesn't 
see  it. 

A  Christian  Scientist  is  the  only  man  who  will 
affirm  that  he  is  perfectly  comfortable  when  he  has 
the  stomach  ache. 

You  cannot  judge  of  the  meat  of  a  sermon  by  its 
volume  of  noise.  Auctioneers  cry  loudest  to  sell 
small  wares. 

A  sermon  may  well  give  its  hearers  a  heartache, 
as  on  Pentecost.  Beware  that  it  does  not  give  them 
a  headache  instead. 

You  cannot  judge  of  the  meat  of  a  sermon  by  its 
length.  Some  cooks  boil  a  very  small  egg  in  a  great 
quantity  of  water. 

It  is  humiliating  to  egotism  but  comforting  to  hope 
to  observe  that  when  one  man  drops  out  temporarily 
or  permanently  "the  work"  goes  right  on.  One  ant 
is  scarcely  missed  from  an  ant  hill. 

A  little  boy  was  singing  at  his  play :  "I  love  daddy 
and  daddy  loves  me,  and  that's  the  reason  we  al- 
ways agree."  Come  to  think  about  it,  that  is  the 
only  sure  basis  for  permanent  agreement. 

But  this  might  do  for  a  dirge  to  sing  over  the 
average  dead  and  disrupted  branch:  "I  didn't  like 


Blue  Pencil  Notes  125 

Jones  and  Jones  didn't  like  me,  and  that  was  the 
reason  we  never  could  agree/' 

It  is  terrible  to  work  a  long  time  for  a  certain 
thing  and  then  find  that  you  cannot  enjoy  it.  Our 
attention  has  been  called  to  the  case  of  Mr.  Fiddle. 
He  took  a  course  in  theology  and  finally  graduated 
as  doctor  of  divinity.  And  then,  alas,  he  found  that 
he  took  no  pleasure  at  all  in  signing  his  name, 
Reverend  Fiddle,  D.  D. 


BOOK   THREE 


To  the  Average  Young  Man 


ZION  BUILDERS 

(Tune:  "Scots,  wha  hae  wi'  Wallace  bled.") 

Far  as  human  greetings  go 
Let  all  Zion  Builders  know 
One  great  tide  begins  to  flow — 
Tis  the  tide  of  Youth! 

Let  each  man  his  weapon  scour; 
This  the  people,  this  the  hour; 
Jesus  leads  to  grace  and  pow"r, 
Victory  and  truth! 

You  who  read  of  Enoch's  band; 
You  who  dream  of  Zion's  land; 
Gather  at  the  Lord's  command, — 
Strong  of  heart  and  thews! 

You  whose  fathers  loved  and  bled, 
Stained  her  soil  with  living  red, 
See  fair  Zion's  drooping  head, — 
Send  her  joyous  news! 

Tell  her  you  have  heard  her  plea; 
Pledge  yourselves  on  bended  knee; 
Zion,  Zion  shall  be  free, — 
Zion  shall  be  great! 

Let  one  object  be  your  goal; 
Let  one  purpose  stir  your  soul; 
Jesus  stands  to  call  his  roll, — 

Zion  must  not  wait!  E.  A.  S. 


THE  GREATEST  BATTLE  GROUND 

EVERY  young  man  who  tries  to  be  a  man  in  the 
best  sense  of  the  term  is  conscious  of  warring 
forces  within  him. 

God  and  the  Devil  both  want  that  kind  of  a  man. 
So  do  not  be  discouraged  if  generous,  full-hearted 
desires  to  live  right  and  do  good  give  way  at  times 
to  black  moods  when  the  impulse  is  to  do  evil  and  go 
wrong.  You  are  the  prize  for  which  powers  contend. 
Your  heart  is  the  battle  field  of  spiritual  forces. 
There  Apollyon  meets  Jesus  Christ.  With  whom  will 
you  side  in  this  great  conflict? 

Whittier  felt  this  struggle  within  himself  and  em- 
bodied it  in  his  poem  about  the  "two  voices." 
Tennyson  experienced  it  and  wrote: 

"Where  is  one  that,  born  of  woman,  altogether  can  escape 
From  the  lower  world  within  him,  moods  of  tiger,  or  of 
ape?" 

The  great  Apostle  Paul  felt  it  and  said:  "1  find 
then  a  law,  that,  when  I  would  do  good,  evil  is  pres- 
ent with  me.  ...  I  see  another  law  in  my  members 
warring  against  the  law  of  my  mind." 

What  a  fine  thing  it  would  seem  to  be  if  we  could 

settle  all  moral  questions  once  for  all,  in  one  brief 

struggle,  determine  to  do  right,  and  there  have  the 

matter  ended.  Feeling  after  such  a  Utopia,  some  have 

5  129 


130  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

evolved  the  theology  of  sanctification  and  complete 
inability  to  sin. 

But  that  is  not  the  way  men  grow  strong.  Human 
agency  continues  with  us  every  day.  So  long  as  it 
continues,  both  forces  will  appeal  to  us  for  support 
and  allegiance. 

We  cannot  will  away  to-day  our  agency  of  to-mor- 
row. Nor  can  anyone  do  it  for  us. 

We  cannot  decide  questions  of  moral  conduct  to- 
day so  that  they  may  not  be  reopened  to-morrow  by 
the  Apollyon  and  the  Jesus  who  are  contending  for 
men's  souls. 

But  we  can  fortify  ourselves  to-day  so  that  it  will 
be  easier  for  us  to  answer  right  to-morrow — and  in- 
creasingly easy  as  the  days  go  by. 

The  same  old  struggle  is  set  forth  in  the  Book  of 
Mormon,  where  it  is  said  that  one  force  invites  and 
entices  to  do  good  while  the  other  force  invites  and 
entices  to  do  evil. 

If  we  side  with  the  good  to-day  it  will  be  easier  to 
side  with  the  good  to-morrow.  Light  cleaves  to 
light.  Our  characters  grow  stronger.  With  God  on 
our  side  we  must  prevail. 

You  cannot  afford  to  heed  the  voice  that  tempts 
you  to  do  wrong.  You  cannot  afford  to  prostitute 
and  degrade  your  manhood. 

Choose,  then,  ever  to  answer  the  appeal  welling  up 
in  your  nature  to  love  and  cherish  purity,  honesty, 
and  virtue;  resist  always  that  low,  debasing  cry  of 
the  tiger  or  the  ape  in  your  nature  that  would  render 
you  sensual,  carnal,  and  devilish. 


MORAL   SUICIDE 

EVERY  normal  young  man  has  hidden  within 
him  a  finer  nature  and  tender  sensibilities.  If 
it  were  not  so,  the  appeal  of  good  to  humanity 
would  be  hopeless. 

You  may  conceal  this  better  nature,  and  even  deny 
it  to  your  own  self,  but  it  is  there. 

It  asserts  itself  when  you  feel  tender  affection  for 
your  mother.  And  when  you  feel  reverence  and 
honor  for  your  father.  And  when  you  feel  that  you 
will  be  loyal  and  true  to  a  friend.  And  when  you 
think  of  some  particular  young  woman  as  being  all 
that  is  pure,  lovely,  and  desirable. 

It  asserts  itself  when  you  flinch  a  little  at  the 
sound  of  profanity,  and  when  you  must  harden  your 
will  a  little  before  you  can  bring  yourself  to  repeat  a 
vulgar  story.  And  when  you  shrink  from  physical 
contact  with  sin  and  corruption. 

It  asserts  itself  when  you  respond  to  a  noble  ap- 
peal. And  when  you  help  the  weak  and  poor.  And 
when  you  thrill  to  the  sound  of  music  or  a  great 
poem.  And  when  you  burn  with  patriotism.  And 
when  you  think  with  awe  of  God  and  the  universe. 

You  cannot  stifle  these  impulses  without  suffering. 
When  you  cut  an  artery  or  swallow  carbolic  acid 
you  kill  the  body.  But  when  you  debauch  and  crucify 
the  better  nature  within  you,  you  kill  the  soul.  There 
are  no  spiritual  anaesthetics.  The  body  can  scarcely 

131 


132  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

die  without  pain.  The  soul  cannot  die  without  an 
eternity  of  agony.  No  fleeting  counterfeit  pleasure 
can  recompense  you.  The  price  is  too  big. 

These  finer  emotions  are  not  something  to  be 
ashamed  of.  They  are  not  an  evidence  of  weakness. 
You  should  not  attempt  to  crush  them. 

They  have  been  most  dominant  in  those  men  who 
have  been  biggest  and  best.  They  ally  you  with  a 
notable  company.  They  set  you  apart  from  the  vile 
and  the  vulgar.  They  are  the  leaven  of  true  man- 
hood within  you. 

Never  let  them  die.  When  they  die,  you  are  dead. 
When  they  live,  you  live. 


VIBRATING    HEARTSTRINGS 

SOMETIMES  when  we  abrade  our  cuticle  we  won- 
der why  men  have  nerves  and  blood  vessels — 
so  much  pain  and  offensive  gore  over  such  a 
trifling  matter.  But  that  is  one  difference  between 
men  and  vegetables. 

Sometimes  when  we  suffer  and  mourn  we  wonder 
why  we  are  made  so  sensitive  to  sorrow.  But  that  is 
one  difference  between  men  and  brutes. 

Have  you  a  heart  that  chills  at  an  affront,  that 
faints  with  homesickness,  that  agonizes  over  the 
death  or  departure  of  loved  ones  ? 

Then  you  are  the  more  a  man  or  woman. 

Cabbages  do  not  miss  their  friends.  Hogs  are 
never  homesick.  Pumpkins  are  never  melancholy. 

The  capacity  to  feel  increases  among  the  higher 
organisms.  Some  of  the  higher  and  nobler  animals 
evince  emotions  that  are  truly  worthy  of  respect. 
Man,  highest  and  noblest  of  all,  created  just  a  little 
lower  than  the  angels,  has  a  divine  range  of  emotions 
coupled  with  a  human  capacity  to  err  and  suffer. 

These  things  mark  the  ability  to  rise.  Vegetables 
and  animals  cannot  rise  above  their  own  kingdoms; 
but  man  can  rise  from  his  present  lowly  state  into 
the  kingdom  of  heaven,  for  he  has  life,  intelligence, 
volition,  nerves,  a  heart,  a  soul.  All  these  things 
that  fit  him  to  realize  and  feel  and  appreciate  a  full- 
ness of  joy,  also,  by  unavoidable  association  make  it 

133 


134  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

possible  for  him  to  suffer  a  fullness  of  woe  and 
misery. 

But  to  a  man  also  is  given  an  intellect,  to  preside 
over  his  emotions  and  control  them,  so  they  may  not 
destroy  him  or  injure  others.  Never  forget  that. 

This  is  a  part  of  manhood's  estate.  Out  of  it  have 
come  most  priceless  gains  for  humanity.  Out  of 
wisely  endured  suffering  in  all  ages  have  come  the 
greatest  deeds  of  heroism,  the  most  sublime  poems, 
the  most  consecrated  lives. 

Jesus  himself  was  a  man  of  sorrows  and  ac- 
quainted with  grief.  Without  the  ability  to  suffer 
and  sympathize  he  could  never  have  been  a  Savior. 
He  might  otherwise  have  been  a  cold,  austere,  im- 
maculate, unapproachable  God — never  a  loving  Re- 
deemer. 

Without  the  same  wide  and  deep  range  of  feeling 
and  sympathy,  and  with  it  that  associated  power  to 
suffer,  we  can  never  be  fit  to  become  his  friends  and 
companions,  to  share  with  him  his  sweet,  serene 
charity,  and  go  out  with  him  to  seek  and  save  the 
lost  and  suffering. 


DON'T  BE  PIG-HEADED 

r  I  ^HE  projecting  under  jaw  of  the  bulldog  enables 

him  to  take  a  good,  firm  hold ;  but  his  shallow 

brain  pan  does  not  hold  enough  coordinate 

common  sense  and  logic  to  enable  him  to  know  when 

to  let  go. 

He  is  strong  on  tenacity,  but  weak  on  "dog  sense." 
He  is  impervious  to  mercy,  compunction,  logic,  and 
brickbats. 

He  may  win  his  fight,  just  on  that  one  trait  of 
dogged  tenacity.  But  after  it  is  won,  it  may  de- 
velop that  he  was  wrong  all  the  way  through,  and 
ought  to  be  ashamed  of  himself — only  he  has  not 
brains  enough  to  be  ashamed.  All  that  he  has  is 
that  projecting  under  jaw. 

A  man,  a  real  man,  should  be  built  along  different 
lines.  A  good,  square  jaw  will  help  him  through  the 
fight,  and  is  a  fine  thing  to  have.  But  he  needs  also 
a  well-filled  brain  pan,  and  a  conscience,  and  a  well- 
developed  sense  of  decency  and  right. 

A  man  ought  to  be  man  enough  to  get  out  of  a 
thing  when  he  finds  that  it  is  not  worth  pushing  to 
the  end.  He  ought  to  be  man  enough  to  abandon 
a  fight  when  he  finds  that  he  is  wrong — and  then 
get  in  on  the  right  side. 

A  man  ought  to  have  consideration  for  the  feel- 
ings of  others  and  for  the  weak  and  defenseless,  and 
not  push  his  enterprise  to  success  across  the  broken 

135 


136  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

hearts  and  hopes  of  others.  It  is  splendid  to  have  the 
tenacity  of  a  bulldog ;  but  contemptible  to  use  it  like 
a  bulldog. 

Some  people  pride  themselves  on  the  fact  that  they 
never  give  up;  that  they  win  out,  right  or  wrong; 
that  no  one  can  silence  them,  or  convince  them,  or 
down  them.  They  do  not  know  when  they  are 
beaten.  Half  the  time  they  are  worsted,  and  every- 
one knows  it,  only  they  will  not  admit  it. 

They  would  feel  ashamed  to  make  an  apology,  even 
when  wrong.  Once  started  they  must  mangle  their 
way  through  things  in  some  fashion,  even  after  they 
have  discovered  that  they  "are  in  wrong." 

To  such  this  may  seem  a  singular  thing,  but  it  is 
a  fact,  that  among  all  the  beatitudes,  they  will  never 
find  where  Jesus  said:  "Blessed  are  the  pig-headed." 

Moral :    Be  men,  not  bulldogs. 


A  PICTURE  OF  THE  WORLD'S 
WORK 

DID  you  ever  stop  to  picture  the  work  that  is 
done  in  the  world  in  a  single  day?  the  im- 
mense exertion  of  humanity  in  a  single  day? 
All  over  the  world  they  are  laboring.  Yonder  to  the 
east,  in  greater  New  York  City,  they  are  erecting 
their  skyscrapers,  shouldering  the  clouds  aside,  or 
digging  their  subways,  until  it  looks  as  though  a  race 
greater  than  man  had  been  at  work;  still  further, 
across  the  waters,  populous  London,  roaring  with 
commerce,  also  Edinburgh,  Manchester,  Birmingham 
and  the  cities  of  Europe;  to  the  west  are  busy  San 
Francisco,  Spokane,  Seattle,  and  overseas  the  toiling 
little  brown  people  of  the  nation  of  the  cherry  blos- 
som, and  the  toiling  millions  of  China;  south  of  us 
the  black  man  sweats  and  sings  in  the  cotton  fields ; 
while  to  the  north  white  men  toil  in  the  great  wheat 
fields  of  western  Canada;  and  all  around  us  is  the 
great  valley  of  the  Mississippi,  a  generation  ago  a 
wilderness,  where  now  the  armies  of  industry  culti- 
vate a  lovely  garden  plot  bigger  and  richer  than 
many  a  populous  and  wealthy  empire  of  old.  All  over 
the  world  with  the  rising  of  the  morning  sun  the 
song  of  industry  begins — the  sound  of  trowel  on 
brick,  of  wheel  on  rail,  of  saw  through  wood,  of 
hammer  on  anvil,  of  escaping  steam,  whirling  belts, 

137 


138  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

sounding  whistles — the  world's  anthem  of  industry 
that  goes  on  till  the  stars  come  out  at  night. 

Think  of  the  tremendous  expenditure  of  human 
will  power  that  drives  this  wonderful  industry  for- 
ward day  by  day,  year  by  year,  century  by  century. 
What  is  it  for?  Is  it  simply  that  we  may  live ?  Pri- 
marily, yes.  But  above  and  beyond  that,  that  we  may 
work  out  our  destiny,  which  was  meant  to  be  one  not 
only  of  dominion  but  also  of  honor — and  it  should  be 
that  we  may  do  the  will  of  God.  Not  until  this  tre- 
mendous expenditure  of  will  and  muscle  and  brain  is 
consecrated  to  the  service  of  God  can  humanity  go 
forward  towards  its  redemption.  A  single  individual 
who  goes  out  with  that  ideal  is  helping  towards  that 
state  as  can  no  other  individual. 

Do  you  think  that  all  this  goes  forward  without 
divine  direction?  Shall  we  accept  the  philosophy 
that  is  stated  in  the  poem  by  William  Watson,  where 
he  says : 

In  cave  and  bosky  dene 

Of  old  there  crept  and  ran 
The  gibbering  form  obscene 

That  was  and  was  not  man. 
The  desert  beasts  went  by 

In  fairer  covering  clad: 
More  speculative  eye 

The  couchant  lion  had, 
And  goodlier  speech  the  birds,  than  we  when  we  began. 

A  soul  so  long  deferred 

In  his  blind  brain  he  bore, 
It  might  have  slept  unstirred  . 

Ten  million  noontides  more. 


A  Picture  of  the  World's  Work  139 

Yea,  round  him  darkness  might 

Till  now  her  folds  have  drawn. 
O'er  that  enormous  night 

So  casual  came  the  dawn, 
Such  hues  of  hap  and  hazard  Man's  Emergence  wore! 

Can  we  think  that  back  of  all  this  was  only  the 
stirring  of  discontent  in  the  brain  of  an  ape,  and  that 
it  has  all  come  down  through  hap  and  hazard,  casual 
and  uncertain,  until  we  have  reached  our  present 
state?  These  poets  may  speak  for  themselves  re- 
garding their  genealogy ;  we  believe  that  God  created 
man  just  a  little  lower  than  the  angels,  and  crowned 
him  with  glory,  and  that  his  guiding  and  directing 
hand  has  been  over  all  nations.  In  the  language  of 
Tennyson,  "We  doubt  not  through  the  ages  one  in- 
creasing purpose  runs."  That  purpose  will  never  be 
fulfilled  until  intelligently  man  moves  forward  into 
that  higher  stage,  that  state  that  some  look  forward 
to,  which  we  term  Zion,  and  which  can  only  come 
when  we  realize  that  God  indeed  is  with  us. 

Over  and  against  this  hap  and  hazard  poem  that 
brings  man  up  from  the  ape,  and  that  holds  out  no 
promise  of  the  future,  we  will  place  one  verse  from 
a  poem  by  Hermann  Hagedorn: 


Kinsman, 

Our  release  is  not  yet. 

Nor  shall  it  come  amid  shouts, 

The  exhortations  of  loud  tongues, 

Or  the  uprising  of  multitudes. 


140  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

Our  release  cometh 
When  the  heart  of  man 
Shall  be  as  a  plowed  field, 
Awaiting  in  the  cool  dawn 
The  footsteps  of  the  Sower. 


THE  MAN  WHO  NEVER  STOPS  AND 
NEVER  TURNS   BACK 

GOLIATH  was  a  big  man — no,  he  was  not — he 
was  a  little  bit  of  a  man  in  a  big  hulk  of  a 
body.    He  was  six  cubits  and  a  span  high,  and 
his  spear's  shaft  was  like  a  weaver's  beam.     But 
about  all  that  we  know  concerning  him  is  that  he 
made  a  big  noise  and  a  lot  of  bluster  and  was  killed 
with  a  pebble  by  a  shepherd  lad. 

General  Grant,  by  way  of  contrast,  was  a  big  man 
in  a  little  body.  He  went  around  with  his  hat  pulled 
down  over  his  eyes  and  made  one  word  do  the  work 
that  two  had  always  done  before.  But  in  the  hour 
of  his  country's  need  he  swung  two  great  armies 
into  battle  and  forced  his  terrible  antagonist  south- 
ward, inch  by  inch,  and  pounded  him  to  pieces.  He 
was  as  great  in  victory  as  he  had  been  relentless  in 
attack,  for  he  refused  to  take  from  his  brave  adver- 
sary the  sword  that  he  was  about  to  surrender. 

It  is  said  by  one  of  Grant's  historians  that  he  was 
of  Scotch  descent,  and  that  the  motto  of  his  clan  in 
Aberdeenshire  was,  "Stand  fast,  stand  firm,  stand 
sure."  I  do  not  know  whether  that  statement  is  true 
or  not,  but  I  do  find  significant  words  in  one  of  the 
first  chapters  of  his  Memoirs.  He  is  recounting  an 
incident  that  occurred  in  his  boyhood  days,  and 
says,  "One  of  my  superstitions  had  always  been, 

141 


142  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

when  I  started  to  go  anywhere  or  do  anything,  not 
to  turn  back  or  stop  until  the  thing  intended  was  ac- 
complished." A  fine  motto  when  one  is  sure  he  is 
right. 

Not  to  turn  back  or  stop  until  the  thing  intended 
was  accomplished!  When  he  graduated  from  West 
Point  there  were  twenty-nine  members  in  his  class. 
He  occupied  twenty-first  place.  There  were  twenty 
young  men  above  him  who  had  abilities  in  one  way 
or  another  superior  to  his,  and  who  gave  greater 
promise  than  he  of  being  of  service  to  their  country. 
But  he  was  the  one  who  never  stopped  and  never 
turned  back. 

There  were  many  generals  in  the  Civil  War,  and 
you  may  hear  people  arguing  yet  to-day  that  Sher- 
man was  a  greater  general,  or  McClellan  was  a 
greater  general;  but  while  they  may  have  been 
greater  in  some  respects,  Grant  was  the  one  who 
never  stopped  and  never  turned  back. 

We  who  are  engaged  in  the  greatest  warfare  of  all 
time  may  well  take  a  lesson  from  the  life  of  this  man. 
How  many  of  our  young  men  and  women  will  pledge 
themselves  to  go  forward  in  that  work,  and  never 
stop  and  never  turn  back  until  it  is  accomplished? 
Such  an  army  of  young  people  will  be  invincible.  In 
that  day  the  army  of  the  Lord  will  become  "very 
great  and  very  terrible." 


THE    TESTIMONY    OF    THE    CLOCK 

r  I  ^HE  midweek  prayer  meeting  was  in  progress — 

if  a  long  pause  with  nothing  being  said  can  be 

called  progress.     No  one  seemed  willing  to 

"improve  the  time."    An  intense  stillness  prevailed, 

broken  only  by  the  loud  "tick — tock — tick — tock"  of 

the  old  church  clock,  which  seemed  to  sound  louder 

and  louder  every  time  the  pendulum  swung  to  and 

fro. 

Finally  a  young  man  arose  and  said,  "That  clock  is 
getting  on  my  nerves.  I  can't  stand  it  any  longer. 
That  old  clock  seems  to  bear  its  testimony  most 
loudly  when  we  keep  silent." 

Truly  the  clock  does  bear  its  testimony,  and  that 
most  loudly  when  the  Saints  are  inactive  and  inat- 
tentive to  duty. 

It  testifies  that  time  is  flying.  Now  is  the  time  to 
act.  The  golden  present  is  the  hour  of  opportunity. 
Insistently  it  calls  our  attention  to  our.  duty  and 
bears  witness  between  us  and  God  that  we  are  hav- 
ing our  chance  NOW. 

Some  of  us  are  young,  some  are  mid-aged,  some 
are  already  old.  It  is  only  a  question  of  time,  and 
that  too  of  time  that  passes  like  a  'dream,  like  a 
shadow  over  still  water,  like  a  breath  of  summer  air, 
like  an  iridescent,  sun-kissed  dewdrop,  until  we 
shall  all  be  old.  Youth  and  manhood,  girlhood  and 
womanhood  pass  quickly  away,  and  men  and  women 

143 


144  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

find  themselves  old,  with  opportunity  largely  behind 
them,  so  far  as  this  life  is  concerned.  The  splendid 
assets  of  youth  are  quickly  exchanged  for  the  griev- 
ous liabilities  of  old  age. 

Youth  is  the  time  for  action.  Let  those  who  are 
still  young  and  strong,  vigorous  and  enthusiastic, 
enter  upon  this  gospel  warfare  and  throw  into  it 
their  abundant  energy.  Youth  is  the  time  to  enter 
fully  upon  service.  Let  us  heed  the  testimony  of  the 
clock,  and  in  harmony  with  the  admonition  of  the 
Master,  "Work  while  the  day  lasts/' 


BRAIN  PATHS 

A  SINGLE  step  on  the  springing  sod  leaves  little 
impression.  A  single  pair  of  feet  passing  once 
over  the  greensward  scarcely  leaves  a  trail. 

But  when  the  feet  pass  often  over  the  same 
ground,  even  if  it  be  only  at  intervals,  there  appears 
in  time  a  well-defined  path.  As  the  years  go  by,  deep 
grooves  are  worn  and  the  ground  is  beaten  down  un- 
til it  becomes  almost  as  hard  as  flint. 

A  single  thought  passing  through  the  brain  leaves 
scarcely  a  trace.  But  if  the  feet  of  the  soul  pass  that 
way  again  and  again,  deep  ruts  of  habit  are  formed 
that  are  as  difficult  to  eradicate  as  the  hard-beaten 
course  of  the  ancient  path  across  the  meadow. 

If  the  path  be  a  forbidden  one  of  thought  about 
vile  and  sinful  matters,  along  which  the  soul  slinks 
ashamed  and  almost  afraid  lest  some  one  by  chance 
look  in  through  the  open  windows  of  the  eyes  and 
see  what  is  going  on,  the  effect  upon  character  is 
most  disastrous. 

Ever  and  ever  it  is  easier  for  thought  to  take 
the  old  path  through  the  brain.  The  habit  becomes 
constantly  stronger.  The  ruts  are  worn  deeper. 

Safety  lies  in  thinking  about  legitimate  and  wor- 
thy things.  Then  habit  becomes  a  friend. 

Here  we  find  a  broad  field  for  exploration.  There 

145 


146  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

is  no  need  to  take  the  same  old  path  every  day,  like 
the  man  who  walks  only  to  and  from  shop  to  dwell- 
ing, or  from  dwelling  to  store. 

There  are  small  souls  who  walk  only  one  path, 
leaving  all  the  broad  fields  of  thought  unexplored. 
These  are  men  of  few  ideas;  they  approach  mono- 
mania. 

Prejudice  is  only  another  name  for  the  hardened 
and  narrow  brain  path  to  which  they  cling  and  from 
which  they  refuse  to  be  diverted.  They  dare  not  turn 
aside  a  moment  lest  they  lose  the  old  familiar  trail 
in  which  they  have  walked  and  in  which  their  fathers 
have  walked. 

The  old  religion,  the  old  philosophy,  the  old  politi- 
cal allegiance,  must  not  be  disturbed.  They  specu- 
lated to  a  limited  degree  on  these  things  years  ago 
and  blazed  a  little  trail  that  ended  too  soon.  They 
will  walk  back  and  forth  over  this  path  that  leads 
nowhere,  but  new  fields  they  will  not  explore. 

That  is  why  some  men  have  but  one  sermon.  That 
is  why  some  men  always  vote  the  same  ticket.  That 
is  why  some  men  have  a  little  light,  but  refuse  the 
fullness  of  the  gospel. 

Dare  to  be  progressive  in  thought.  Dare  to  think 
clean  thoughts  and  free  thoughts. 

There  is  a  world  of  true  philosophy  in  the  in- 
junction of  Paul,  indicating  as  it  does  pure  thought 
and  diversified  thought : 

"Finally,  brethren,  whatsoever  things  are  true, 
whatsoever  things  are  honest,  whatsoever  things  are 


Brain  Paths  147 

just,  whatsoever  things  are  pure,  whatsoever  things 
are  lovely,  whatsoever  things  are  of  good  report;  if 
there  be  any  virtue,  if  there  be  any  praise,  think  on 
these  things." 


IN  LINE  OF  DUTY— THE  STORY  OF 
THE  EVANELIA 

r  I  ^HERE  was  a  time  when  the  Evanelia  rode  over 
high  and  dangerous  waves.  There  came  a 
"^  time  later  when  she  sank  like  a  log  in  quiet 
waters.  What  made  the  difference? 

We  were  profoundly  impressed  some  years  ago 
while  hearing  Captain  (Elder)  Joseph  Burton  tell 
how  he  took  the  Evanelia  over  the  bar  at  San  Fran- 
cisco at  the  beginning  of  her  long  and  perilous  jour- 
ney to  carry  the  gospel  to  the  islands  of  the  southern 
seas. 

When  he  put  out  to  sea  he  discovered  that  an  un- 
expectedly heavy  swell  was  running  in  at  the  bar, 
due  to  a  terrific  storm  that  had  been  raging  along 
the  coast  for  one  week  while  the  Evanelia  lay  in  the 
bay. 

Another  vessel  that  attempted  to  make  the  pas- 
sage under  similar  conditions  was  literally  turned 
bottom  upward  by  the  waves,  so  that  her  masts  were 
thrust  up  through  the  bottom,  and  she  sank. 

But  the  Evanelia  was  preserved  in  safety.  It  had 
been  predicted  that  she  should  ride  the  highest 
waves.  She  did  so.  She  was  in  the  line  of  her  duty 
and  God  protected  her. 

Later  certain  persons,  contrary  to  the  advice  of 
the  Bishop,  converted  her  into  a  trading  vessel  and 

148 


In  Line  of  Duty  149 

loaded  her  with  "bufa,"  shells,  and  iron.  While  on 
such  a  trip  she  sank  in  quiet  waters  and  without 
warning.  She  was  out  of  the  line  of  duty,  and  God 
did  not  protect  her.  She  had  been  diverted  from  her 
mission  and  so  perished. 

There  is  a  lesson  here  for  all  Latter  Day  Saints. 

While  we  are  in  the  line  of  duty  God  can  and  will 
take  care  of  us  in  the  midst  of  the  gravest  dangers 
and  perplexities.  If  God  is  for  us,  who  can  be  against 
us? 

But  if  we  permit  ourselves  to  be  diverted  from  the 
line  of  duty  into  something  that  God  has  not  ap- 
pointed for  us,  we  have  no  assurance  of  divine  pro- 
tection and  will  most  surely  fail  and  may  possibly 
perish  most  miserably. 

Who,  then,  should  hesitate  long  to  make  the  choice^ 
made  by  Joshua,  "As  for  me  and  my  house,  we  will 
serve  the  Lord"? 

Remember  the  story  of  the  Evanelia. 


THE  TIGER  AND  THE  DERELICT 

I  REMEMBER  a  story  read  in  early  boyhood  days. 
It  was  a  story  of  such  blood-congealing  powers 
that  it  will  never  be  forgotten. 

A  company  of  men  at  sea  for  a  long  time  heard  the 
slow  regular  tolling  of  a  bell.  I  can  still  hear  that 
funereal  bell  over  the  waters,  presaging  the  worthy 
mysteries  that  followed. 

Presently  they  sighted  a  battered  derelict  rolling 
in  the  trough  of  the  sea.  A  bell  rigged  to  the  stump 
of  a  mast  tolled  slowly  with  the  pitching  of  the  an- 
cient craft  of  mystery  in  the  wash  of  the  waves.  I 
can  still  see  that  battered  wreck  which  so  piqued  my 
^alert  imagination. 

No  living  thing  was  in  sight  on  this  derelict;  but 
at  intervals  came  drifting  over  the  waters  a  deep, 
mournful  roar  as  of  some  wild  beast.  I  can  still  hear 
that  roar. 

Putting  off  in  a  rowboat,  these  men  drew  near  this 
ancient  wreck  of  some  unknown  ship.  They  came 
alongside  with  tingling  nerves,  the  tolling  of  the  bell 
and  the  roaring  of  the  beast  in  their  ears. 

Boarding  the  wreck  they  found  the  hatches  bat- 
tered down.  Frightened  by  the  awful  sounds  from  be- 
neath, some  were  for  returning ;  but  the  captain  in- 
sisted upon  breaking  open  the  hatches.  While  they 
were  being  battered  down  he  stood  with  rifle  ready 
for  the  unknown. 

150 


The  Tiger  and  the  Derelict  151 

An  opening  effected,  they  descended  into  the  evil- 
smelling  gloom  below,  lighted  only  by  the  blaze  of 
a  torch.  An  awful  roar  greeted  them  (I  can  dis- 
tinctly hear  it),  and  in  a  far  corner  crouched  an 
enormous,  half-starved  Bengal  tiger,  with  blazing 
eyes,  and  red,  wide-open  jaws.  Of  course  a  lucky 
shot  dispatched  him. 

By  the  side  of  the  dead  tiger  was  found  the  skel- 
eton of  a  man.  A  broken  chain  and  a  staple  in  the 
wall  showed  where  the  tiger  had  been  fastened. 

A  fragment  of  diary  told  the  story  of  the  skeleton 
that  had  been  a  man.  He  had  been  imprisoned  and 
cast  adrift  in  this  old  vessel  by  pirate  chiefs  off  the 
coast  of  India. 

The  tiger  had  been  fastened  by  a  chain  intended 
to  hold  him  only  until  he  became  frantic  with  hunger. 
Crouched  in  a  corner  of  the  cabin  the  poor  prisoner 
had  written  his  diary,  each  day  noting  the  increasing 
restlessness  of  the  wild  beast  chained  only  a  few  feet 
from  him.  A  break  in  the  diary  followed  the  break 
in  the  chain.  I  lived  over  those  days  in  that  vile 
cabin  with  that  imprisoned  wretch. 

A  strange,  ghastly,  and  improbable  story  you  say. 
Yes;  but  I  have  since  many  times  seen  it  reenacted 
with  more  or  less  faithfulness  to  detail. 

Keep  your  eyes  open.  There  are  numberless  dere- 
licts drifting  on  the  sea  of  life.  The  man  in  each  one 
has  been  killed  by  the  tiger  of  lust,  passion,  appetite, 
greed,  or  thirst,  with  which  he  was  imprisoned. 

There  is  the  situation:  The  derelict;  the  tiger,  the 


152  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

man — or  that  which  was  a  man  at  one  time.  All  that 
is  lacking  is  the  tolling  bell.  It  will  not  toll  until 
the  funeral  takes  place.  It  should  toll  now  for  dead 
men  that  yet  walk. 

The  man  in  the  derelict  could  not  kill  the  tiger  and 
he  had  no  deliverer.  But  men  imprisoned  in  flesh 
with  the  wild  beast  of  appetite  or  passion  may  have 
deliverance  if  they  will.  For  one  has  come  to  set  the 
captives  free  and  to  destroy  all  forms  of  evil. 

The  old  story  was  not  a  fit  one  for  a  boy  to  read. 
But  now  perhaps  it  has  served  its  purpose  and 
pointed  a  moral. 

We  were  reminded  of  this  old  story  when  we  noted 
a  statement  made  by  a  distinguished  clergyman  who 
was  traveling  in  Europe  at  the  outbreak  of  the  World 
War.  He  said  (as  quoted  in  the  Literary  Digest)  : 

"Thousands  of  men  that  we  saw  howling  in  all  the 
streets  of  Europe  were  not  men  any  more.  They  had 
become  beasts.  The  beast  could  be  seen  in  their  eyes. 
They  howled  for  only  three  things:  drink,  women, 
and  the  blood  of  their  brothers." 


THE   COLLECTOR  OF  VIRTUES 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  lived  a  certain  man 
who  was  a  great  collector  of  old  paintings. 
His  taste  was  good  and  his  purse  was  long, 
consequently  he  acquired  a  notable  collection.  But 
he  was  of  spare  habit,  and  one  foggy  day  the  cold 
air  got  unusually  close  to  his  thinly-covered  ribs  and 
he  died  of  pneumonia.  His  paintings  were  sold  at 
auction  and  the  collection  was  broken  up.  He  could 
not  take  his  treasures  with  him. 

At  the  same  time  there  lived  another  man  who  was 
a  connoisseur  of  wines.  Having  a  deep  cellar  and 
wide  resources,  he  soon  had  a  great  stock  of  wines  of 
the  rarest  and  most  ancient  vintage.  But  he  was  a 
big,  fat  man,  with  a  red  face,  and  one  day,  after  an 
unusually  heavy  dinner,  his  too  abundant  blood  broke 
through  upon  the  too  small  area  reserved  for  brains, 
and  he  died  of  apoplexy.  He  could  not  take  his  wines 
with  him  and  his  heirs  soon  drank  them  up,  cursed 
him,  and  went  out  to  look  for  work. 

Contemporaneously  there  lived  a  woman  with  a 
passion  for  jewels  and  precious  stones.  Having  great 
revenue  from  tenements  occupied  by  workingmen  and 
widows,  and  from  buildings  rented  for  immoral  pur- 
poses, she  was  able  to  acquire  many  valuable  dia- 
monds, pearls,  sapphires,  rubies,  moonstones,  and 
other  gems  of  every  hue.  But  as  the  jewels  came  the 
years  went.  Her  husband  deserted  her.  There  were 
no  children.  The  poodle  dog  died.  And  after  some 

153 


154  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

years  of  senile  decay,  the  poor  rich  woman  doddered 
off  into  eternity.  She  could  not  take  her  collection 
with  her,  and  to-day  her  gems  are  scattered  in  ten 
kingdoms;  but  none  of  them  in  the  kingdom  of 
heaven. 

There  were  others  who  collected  postage  stamps, 
bonds,  deeds,  horses,  automobiles;  what  not?  In 
time  something  unexpected  and  very  unpleasant 
happened  to  each  of  them,  and  they  left  their  collec- 
tions and  went  out  into  the  night. 

There  lived  among  all  these  collectors,  almost  un- 
noticed, a  man  of  very  moderate  means.  One  day, 
chancing  to  look  into  the  mirror  while  exceedingly 
angry,  he  beheld  a  vision  that  disturbed  him  greatly, 
and  he  set  himself  to  the  task  of  acquiring  patience 
and  an  even  temper.  Once  in  his  possession  this 
great  virtue  bred  a  desire  for  others.  And  so  he 
went  on  all  his  life  long,  collecting  virtues :  patience, 
temperance,  humility,  honesty,  virtue,  charity. 

In  due  time  he,  too,  died.  And  then  it  dawned  upon 
the  community  that  a  truly  great  collector  of  the 
most  priceless  rarities  had  dwelt  among  them.  But 
there  was  no  quarrel  over  the  division  of  the  collec- 
tion, for  the  collector  took  it  with  him.  Only  the 
benefits  conferred  upon  others  remained  upon  earth, 
and  these,  though  truly  considerable,  as  time  alone 
will  reveal,  were  subject  to  no  legal  attachments,  and 
having  been  freely  given  were  freely  held  by  the  re- 
cipients. 

Truly  wise  Collector  of  Virtues !  May  many  others 
follow  your  illustrious  example. 


THE   DRIFTING   BOAT 

THE  last  slanting  rays  of  the  sun  reflected  back 
from  the  river  glinted  across  the  prow  of  an 
outward  bound  boat. 

This  boat  was  adventuring  the  coming  night,  the 
forces  of  the  river,  the  menace  of  the  rapids  just  a 
little  further  down  the  stream. 

But  her  challenge  was  determined  and  intelligent. 
Her  oars  beat  the  water  steadily.  Her  rudder  held 
her  to  a  certain,  definite  course.  Her  prow  thrust 
the  waves  resolutely  aside.  Some  certain  fixed  port 
awaited  her  at  the  end  of  the  journey.  Her  oars 
typified  industry;  her  rudder,  determination. 

As  the  sun  disappeared  and  the  evening  mists  came 
up  from  the  river,  another  boat  passed.  This  boat 
was  drifting  with  the  current. 

There  were  no  oars  to  propel  her.  There  was  no 
rudder  to  guide.  She,  too,  adventured  the  night  and 
the  river  and  the  rapids;  but  with  no  fixed  course 
towards  safety. 

Her  course  was  determined  by  the  current  and  the 
winds,  by  outward  circumstances — and  it  led  ever 
downward. 

Later  we  observed  two  young  lives  voyaging  on 
the  river  of  time. 

One  was  striking  boldly  out — defying  disaster,  it 
is  true,  but  doing  so  intelligently.  Steady,  hard  work 
gave  sure  and  uninterrupted  progress  forward.  In- 

155 


156  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

telligent  determination  held  to  a  fixed  course  to- 
wards an  understood  and  definite  aim. 

The  other  life  was  just  drifting.  There  was  no  sus- 
tained effort.  There  was  no  purpose  or  direction. 
Trivial  circumstances  directed  the  vascillating  course. 
But  the  general  and  inevitable  trend  was  ever  down- 
ward, towards  the  menacing  rapids. 

Are  you  drifting  with  the  current?  Or  have  you 
set  your  own  course,  under  the  direction  of  God,  to- 
wards some  definite  and  worthy  end  for  which  you 
are  willing  to  toil  until  the  journey  terminates  suc- 
cessfully? 


A    LESSON    FROM    THE    SHOP    OF 
THE    OLD    VIOLIN    MAKER 

ONE  day  a  certain  Great  Master  of  the  violin 
wandered  into  the  shop  of  an  old  violin 
maker.  Upon  the  shelves  there  were  violins 
in  all  stages  of  repair — some  cheap  and  poor  and  di- 
lapitated,  others  of  great  beauty  of  design  and  finish 
and  almost  fabulous  value. 

Selecting  a  carefully-cherished  and  ancient  Stradi- 
varius,  of  soft  and  mellow  tone,  he  drew  the  bow 
across  the  strings  and  began  to  play  as  he  alone 
could  play.  Passers-by  who  knew  the  Great  Master, 
and  others  who  fancied  that  they  knew  him,  paused 
to  listen,  enraptured  with  the  music  that  issued  from 
the  shop  of  the  old  violin  maker. 

But  presently  the  Great  Master  put  the  priceless 
Stradivarius  away  in  its  case  and  turned  to  an  in- 
strument of  more  humble  origin.  As  he  drew  the 
bow  across  the  strings  of  this  instrument  doubt  be- 
gan to  appear  upon  the  faces  of  some.  And  a  little 
later,  when  he  chose  to  play  upon  a  warped  and  bat- 
tered violin  whose  notes  were  sometimes  harsh  and 
discordant,  one  declared,  "That  is  not  the  Great 
Master  playing.  That  is  some  novice  or  impostor 
who  has  taken  his  place." 

But  another  replied,  "That  is  the  Great  Master; 
I  know  his  touch  on  any  instrument.  The  harsh  and 
discordant  notes  are  due  to  the  imperfect  instrument 

157 


158  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

on  which  he  plays,  for  even  the  Great  Master  ex- 
presses himself  through  his  instruments,  and  if  they 
are  not  perfect  they  mar  his  expression.  Still  it  is 
the  Great  Master,  and  none  other  could  do  so  well 
with  a  broken  instrument ;  though,  to  be  frank,  I  pre- 
fer to  hear  him  play  upon  the  Stradivarius." 

Thus  it  is  with  the  Great  Master  of  men,  who  plays 
upon  the  heartstrings  of  humanity,  and  expresses 
himself  through  men — only  in  this  instance  volition 
belongs  to  the  instrument  of  expression,  and  He  will 
not  speak  through  an  instrument  that  refuses  to  sub- 
mit to  his  touch. 

When  he  speaks  through  a  mind  that  is  refined, 
talented,  educated,  and  obedient,  there  is  marvelous 
beauty  of  delivery  and  expression.  But  such  an  in- 
strument is  not  always  at  his  hand,  and  obedient  to 
his  will;  and  he  may  sing  the  same  strain  through 
the  heartstrings  and  brain  cells  of  another,  who  is 
willing  to  obey  but  is  not  capable  of  such  refined 
beauty  of  expression.  When  this  latter  occurs,  men 
should  have  enough  of  the  spirit  of  discernment  to  be 
able  to  detect  the  touch  of  the  Master  even  when  it 
falls  upon  a  broken  instrument;  and  the  message 
that  comes  to  them,  if  understood  and  comprehended, 
may  be  as  valuable  as  though  it  saluted  their  ears 
clothed  with  the  greatest  beauty  of  expression  and 
emanating  from  a  polished  instrument  of  world  re- 
nown. 

The  Saints  of  God  are  to  be  the  light  of  the  world, 
the  Master  says,  and  our  light  shoud  never  burn  so 


A  Lesson  From  the  Shop  of  the  Old  Violin  159 

low  that  we  ourselves  will  be  left  in  doubt,  unen- 
lightened, and  undecided  when  God  speaks  to  us. 

The  abrupt  and  unpolished  Peter  and  the  educated 
and  refined  Paul  do  not  speak  after  the  same  manner, 
yet  the  Holy  Spirit  inspired  the  minds  and  hearts  of 
both  and  both  gave  a  message  to  the  souls  of  men. 

Many  of  the  writers  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  were 
unpolished  men,  pioneers,  active  men  of  affairs  and 
adventure,  not  of  the  literati,  and  they  apologize  for 
the  defects  contained  in  their  record,  saying  that 
they  are  the  faults  of  men,  and  not  the  faults  of  God. 
The  Great  Master  did  not  always  play  upon  the  Strad- 
ivarius. 

The  Master  of  Men  does  not  always  speak  through 
a  silver-tongued  Isaiah.  At  times  he  uses  a  Lehi  or  a 
Moroni,  or  even  an  unlettered  prophet  and  seer  of 
Palmyra.  Nevertheless,  it  is  the  Spirit  of  the  same 
Master  working  in  all,  for  the  salvation  of  men ;  and 
those  who  know  him  best,  recognize  his  touch  on  any 
instrument  that  he  may  choose  to  use  and  finds  obedi- 
ent to  his  touch  to  the  extent  of  its  limitations. 


HAVE  YOU  KEPT  YOUR  HEAD? 

ON  THE  morning  of  the  day  when  President 
Joseph  Smith  passed  to  his  rest,  he  was  told 
of  the  burning  of  Edison's  great  plant,  sup- 
posed to  have  been  fireproof,  and  into  which  Edison 
had  put  the  ambitions  of  a  lifetime. 

The  aged  President  closed  his  eyes  for  a  moment; 
then  he  opened  them  with  a  quizzical  expression,  and 
inquired,  "Did  his  head  burn?" 

When  answered  in  the  negative,  he  added,  "Well, 
he  is  all  right  then,  if  he  has  that  wonderful  head 
left." 

There  is  a  lesson  in  'that  little  incident  that  is 
worth  learning  and  remembering.  Edison  may  lose 
the  material  accumulations  that  are  but  the  external 
expression  of  his  mental  processes.  But  so  long  as 
his  personality  remains,  so  long  as  he  retains  his 
remarkable  mental  equipment,  his  work  will  go  on. 

The  Edison  plant  can  be  rebuilded.  It  is  largely  a 
matter  of  dollars  to  duplicate  the  buildings  and  equip- 
ment. 

There  is  not  enough  money  in  the  world  to  dupli- 
cate the  Edison  head. 

There  was  more  than  a  jest  in  Sam  Jones's  chal- 
lenge: "They  say  the  newspapers  made  me!  Well, 
all  I  have  to  say  is,  let  them  make  another  Sam 
Jones!" 

160 


Have  You  Kept  Your  Head?  161 

Personality  is  the  most  remarkable  thing  in  the 
world.  So  long  as  a  man  retains  his  personality  and 
has  the  opportunity  to  go  on  developing  his  powers 
and  expressing  himself,  he  need  not  feel  that  all  is 
lost. 

Misfortune  may  overtake  him.  He  may  lose  the 
cherished  material  things  for  which  he  has  labored. 
But  if  he  has  his  head  left  he  can  go  on  and  retrieve 
his  fortunes. 

Perhaps  you  have  had  trouble.  You  have  met  with 
reverses.  Misfortune  cast  you  down. 

Lips  now  turning  to  dust  suggest  the  pertinent 
query,  "Did  you  keep  your  head?" 


PRESERVED   OR  PICKLED 

THE  Reverend  Sam  Jones  used  to  say  that  some 
very  religious  people  imagine  they  are  pre- 
served when  in  fact  they  are  only  pickled. 
He  declared  that  he  watched  his  good  old  mother 
preserve  peaches  and  she  always  sweetened  them  lib- 
erally. He  presumed  that  when  God  preserves  his 
saints  he  does  likewise. 

There  is  more  than  a  grain  of  common  sense  in  the 
homely  illustration; 

Harsh,  sour,  critical  cynicism  has  no  place  what- 
ever in  a  truly  religious  disposition.  Gentleness,  pa- 
tience, long-suffering,  charity,  these  are  the  attri- 
butes of  the  Spirit. 

Strenuous  conflict  with  forces  of  evil  in  various 
forms  sometimes  tends  to  make  one  sarcastic,  acri- 
monious, and  harsh  in  his  methods  of  attack  and  re- 
pulsion. Our  people,  particularly  the  ministry, 
should  be  on  their  guard  lest  this  become  a  matter 
of  habit,  first  reflected  in  speech,  next  in  habitual 
thought,  and  finally  in  the  sour  and  misanthropic 
character  of  the  confirmed  pessimist — pickled  in  his 
own  vinegar.  And  the  finest  honey,  gone  wrong, 
makes  the  sourest  vinegar. 

No  matter  whether  the  evil  that  we  combat  be  out- 
side the  church  or  in  it,  we  must  remain  open,  frank, 
manly,  and  even-tempered  in  our  warfare.  Much 
that  we  see  in  our  opponents  that  seems  so  despic- 

162 


Preserved  or  Pickled  163 

able  is  due  to  human  weakness  and  imperfection.  To 
permit  it  to  react  upon  us  and  spoil  our  characters  by 
robbing  us  of  our  charity  for  and  love  of  humanity 
would  be  sad  indeed.  Thus  we  would  defeat  our- 
selves. 

We  must  maintain  the  broad,  deep  sympathy  that 
characterized  the  Master  in  his  work  of  redemption. 
Often  repulsed,  we  should  never  become  discouraged. 
Often  betrayed  or  defeated,  we  must  work  on. 

Youth  naturally  is  buoyant  and  hopeful ;  age  tends 
to  become  more  crabbed  and  austere.  The  disap- 
pointments, vexations,  and  cares  of  life  account  for 
the  change  so  often  witnessed  as  time  goes  by. 

Happy  the  man  or  woman  who  remains  optimistic, 
broad-minded,  liberal,  enthusiastic,  kindly,  in  spite  of 
disappointments  and  unrealized  hopes  and  ambitions. 

This  achievement  should  be  within  the  reach  of 
the  average  Latter  Day  Saint,  through  the  grace  of 
God  who  has  preserved  them,  i.  e.,  liberally  sweetened 
them  with  his  divine  love  and  compassion  through 
the  indwelling  of  his  Spirit. 

There  is  nothing  more  corroding  than  the  acidity 
'of  a  thoroughly  soured  "Christian" — so-called.  As 
mother-of-vinegar  tends  to  breed  more  acidity,  so  do 
such  tend  to  discourage  and  sour  those  around  them. 

On  the  other  hand,  a  life  of  sunny  good  will  is  like 
a  flood  of  sunshine  and  a  breath  of  fresh  air  com- 
bined, cleansing  the  spiritual  atmosphere,  killing  ma- 
lignant germs,  and  reviving  and  refreshing  all  who 
come  under  its  benign  influences. 


PUTTING  THE  HALTER  ON 
THE  CAMEL 

EVERY  man  needs  self-confidence.  No;  we  did 
not  say  self-conceit.  We  said  self-confidence. 
True  self-confidence  is  based  (1)  on  confi- 
dence in  God,  and  (2)  on  personal  efficiency. 

Confidence  in  God  made  the  apostles  of  old  invin- 
cible. They  said,  and  felt:  "If  God  be  for  us,  who 
can  prevail  against  us  ?"  This  deep-burning  thought 
has  nerved  men  and  women  for  heroic  tasks. 

No  one  can  feel  that  God  is  with  him  unless  he  is 
confident  that  his  cause  is  just.  He  whose  cause  is 
just  is  "thrice  armed."  Supremely  confident  that 
God  is  with  us,  let  us  go  forward  along  right  lines 
with  courage  and  hope. 

Efficiency,  the  second  prerequisite  to  confidence, 
comes  from  preparation.  With  assurance  we  ap- 
proach a  task  for  which  we  are  prepared.  We  can- 
not have  any  confidence  in  ourselves  if,  for  instance, 
we  attempt  to  make  a  speech  upon  a  subject  concern- 
ing which  we  are  ignorant.  But  if  we  have  studied 
it  and  thoroughly  understand  some  leading  facts  con- 
cerning it,  we  have  good  grounds  for  assurance  in 
attempting  to  treat  upon  it. 

Preparation  and  experience  give  efficiency,  and 
efficiency  will  surely  give  a  sense  of  ability  to  succeed 
that  is  invaluable. 

164 


Putting  the  Halter  on  the  Camel  165 

Do  not  dwell  too  much  upon  your  weaknesses  and 
shortcomings.  Think  of  them  just  enough  to  take 
the  necessary  steps  to  overcome  them.  Do  not  brood 
over  them  and  become  discouraged.  The  discouraged 
man  is  defeated  before  he  begins  the  fight.  Think  of 
yourself  in  respectable  terms,  as  one  who  can  and  will 
succeed. 

Fear  unnerves  us.  Resolution  and  determination 
carry  us  forward.  Men  fear  a  great  many  things, 
many  of  which  are  imaginary.  As  one  said,  "I  am  an 
old  man,  and  have  seen  many  troubles — most  of 
which  never  happened." 

Kleiser  refers  to  the  old  fable  of  the  camel.  When 
man  first  saw  a  camel  he  fled  in  terror  before  the 
huge  and  ugly  bulk  of  the  creature.  Later,  taking 
courage,  he  marched  up  to  the  animal  and  put  a 
halter  on  him  and  set  a  child  to  lead  him. 

Thus  it  is  in  many  instances  with  the  things  that 
we  fear.  If  we  march  directly  up  to  them,  we  over- 
come and  bind  them. 

Is  it  an  evil  habit  ?  Is  it  a  fear  to  speak  in  public  ? 
Is  it  a  difficult  problem  ?  Is  it  a  hard  task  ?  Is  it  a 
disagreeable  duty?  Is  it  your  life's  work?  Prepare 
yourself  to  overcome:  Have  confidence  in  yourself 
and  in  God.  Go  straight  at  the  thing,  whatever  it  is, 
and  win  out.  Put  the  halter  on  the  camel. 


COCKLEBUR  FARMING 

YEARS  ago  an  old  Iowa  farmer  was  plowing  his 
corn  when  he  discovered  a  strange  new  plant. 
At  least  it  was  strange  to  him  in  that  new 
prairie  land. 

So  he  plowed  around  it  very  carefully  and  left  it 
standing,  curious  to  learn  what  it  might  be  and  think- 
ing perhaps  he  had  made  a  valuable  discovery.  He 
cultivated  it  all  that  season. 

The  plant  proved  to  be  a  cocklebur,  genus  Xan- 
thium.  In  a  few  years  his  farm  was  headquarters  for 
cockleburs  and  helped  to  seed  the  whole  surrounding 
country  with  the  noxious  pests.  He  had  missed  a 
splendid  opportunity  to  destroy  a  nuisance  at  its 
source.  The  best  time  to  rid  a  farm  of  cockleburs  is 
when  there  is  only  one  cocklebur  on  the  place. 

Many  a  young  man  with  his  first  taste  of  drink  or 
tobacco  or  profanity  or  gambling  experiences  an  en- 
tirely new  sensation.  He  is  uncertain  regarding  its 
exact  nature,  but  decides  to  let  the  thing  grow  and 
see  what  may  come  of  it.  Somewhat  against  his 
higher  instincts  and  with  many  qualms  of  stomach 
and  conscience,  he  cultivates  'the  new  sensation. 

By  and  by  he  discovers  that  he  has  merely  grown 
a  rank  and  evil  habit.  His  entire  system  is  filled  with 
it.  He  is  now  headquarters  for  one  or  more  forms  of 

166 


Cocklebur  Farming  167 

vice  and  helps  to  contaminate  younger  members  of 
the  entire  community. 

Like  the  manager  of  Cocklebur  Farm,  he  has 
made  a  sad  mistake.  The  time  to  overcome  evil  hab- 
its is  at  the  beginning — when  they  are  few  in  number 
and  before  their  roots  have  struck  into  the  soil  and 
before  the  seeds  are  scattered  far  and  wide. 

It  is  a  good  five-year  job  to  eradicate  cockleburs 
from  a  farm,  when  they  have  become  well  established. 
It  is  the  task  of  a  lifetime  to  root  out  evil  habits  that 
have  been  cultivated  and  encouraged  for  years. 

Every  young  man  who  reads  these  lines  will  say, 
What  a  fool  that  old  farmer  was!  No  need  to  say 
more. 


THE   ETERNAL    TRIANGLE 

SOME  one  has  said  that  it  takes  two  to  live  the 
Christian  religion.  Every  effort  to  retire  to  the 
desert  or  bury  oneself  in  a  monastery  in  order 
to  be  truly  religious  must  fail.    There  is  no  oppor- 
tunity for  full  fruition. 

True  religion  involves  at  least  three  individuals, 
a  man,  his  God,  and  his  brother.  Yonder  is  God. 
Here  am  I.  There  is  my  brother.  It  is  the  eternal 
triangle. 

I  have  established  relations  with  God.  My  brother 
has  established  relations  with  God.  But  Christ  is 
not  satisfied  until  my  brother  and  I  have  established 
proper  relations  with  each  other.  And  we  must 
maintain  those  relations. 

For  that  reason  Jesus  has  commanded  that  if  one 
bring  a  gift  to  his  altar  and  there  remember  that 
his  brother  has  aught  against  him,  he  shall  leave  the 
gift  and  go  and  make  peace  with  his  brother. 

When  the  line  of  communication  is  interrupted 
between  a  man  and  his  brother  it  is  interrupted  be- 
tween that  man  and  his  God.  No  man  can  perpet- 
uate a  quarrel,  or  refuse  to  do  his  utmost  to  settle  a 
quarrel,  without  forefeiting  his  right  to  approach 
God.  Others,  too,  may  be  affected.  While  it  is  said 
that  it  takes  two  to  make  a  quarrel,  a  quarrel  is 
seldom  confined  to  two. 

168 


The  Eternal  Triangle  169 

The  shortest  way  to  God  may  be  the  longest  way 
around — via  the  third  person.  Inasmuch  as  you 
have  done  it  unto  him  you  have  done  it  unto  Jesus. 
We  cannot  pass  a  cup  of  cold  water  to  Jesus  ex- 
cepting as  we  press  it  to  the  lips  of  a  brother.  In 
all  temporal  matters  that  is  our  approach. 

So  we  are  told:  "If  thou  lovest  me,  thou  shalt 
serve  me  and  keep  all  my  commandments.  And, 
behold,  thou  wilt  remember  the  poor,  and  consecrate 
of  thy  properties  for  their  support.  .  .  .  And  inas- 
much as  ye  impart  of  your  substance  unto  the  poor, 
ye  will  do  it  unto  me." 

The  time  has  come  when  the  Saints  must  get  closer 
together  in  love  and  sympathy.  The  triangle  must 
be  made  strong  and  sure.  The  point  of  danger— 
the  point  where  the  break  almost  always  occurs,  is 
between  brethren. 


THE  FINISHED  PRODUCT 

(Sermon  at  Lamoni,  Iowa.) 

HERE  are  two  texts  that  appear  in  striking 
contrast : 
"Unto  a  perfect  man,  unto  the  measure  of 
the  stature  of  the  fullness  of  Christ." — Ephesians 
4:  13. 

"And  sin,  when  it  is  finished,  bringeth  forth 
death." — James  1 :  15. 

Every  factory  is  judged  by  its  finished  product. 
Every  tree  is  known  by  its  ripened  fruit.  The  test 
is  both  scriptural  and  scientific.  Men  and  institutions 
and  powers,  natural  and  supernatural,  must  abide  the 
same  test. 

There  are  two  great  powers  at  work  in  the  world, 
shaping  the  characters  of  men.  One  is  evil;  the 
other  is  good.  One  is  of  God ;  the  other  of  the  Devil. 
One  works  to  make  men ;  the  other  to  destroy  them. 
One  works  through  the  church,  and  many  institu- 
tions and  individuals  not  directly  connected  with  the 
church ;  and  everywhere,  in  the  language  of  the  Book 
of  Mormon,  "inviteth  and  enticeth  to  do  good."  The 
other  works  everywhere,  as  opportunity  offers, 
through  individuals  and  institutions,  and  everywhere 
"inviteth  and  enticeth  to  do  evil."  Both  must  be 
judged  by  the  fully  developed  human  characters  that 
result  from  their  influence  and  dominion. 

170 


The  Finished  Product  171 

Some  people,  it  is  true,  seem  to  think  that  the  Devil 
has  gone  out  of  business.  He  does  not  hold  the  prom- 
inent place  in  creeds  that  he  used  to  occupy;  but 
there  is  something  to  the  poem  which  says : 

Men  don't  believe  in  the  Devil  now  as  their  fathers  used  to  do. 
They  have   forced  the  doors  of  the  broadest  creeds  to  let 

his  majesty  through; 
There's  not  a  print  of  his  cloven  hoof,  or  dart  from  his 

fiery  bow, 

On  earth,  in  air,  or  anywhere; — for  the  world  has  voted  it  so! 
But   who   is   binding   the   souls   of   men,  and   making  them 

willing  slaves, 
To  wreck  their  lives  on  the  rocks  of  sin  and  fill  up  bloody 

graves? 
Who  dogs  the  steps  of  the  toiling  Saint?     Who  digs  the  pit 

for  his  feet? 
Who  sows  the  tares  in  the  field  of  time  wherever  God  sows 

the  wheat? 
The  Devil  was  safely  voted  out,  and,  of  course,  the  Devil  is 

gone, 

But  honest  men  would  like  to  know,  Who  carries  his  busi- 
ness on? 


THE  DEVIL  IS  A  GOOD  ADVERTISER 

If  men  think  that  Satan  is  not  doing  business  at 
the  same  old  stand  and  in  the  same  old  way  they  de- 
ceive themselves.  They  do  not  read  the  advertising 
section  of  the  world.  The  Devil  is  a  good  advertiser. 
He  advertises  all  the  time,  in  city  and  village  and 
country.  He  uses  the  most  alluring  and  seductive 
devices,  the  saloon,  the  theater,  the  dance  hall,  the 


172  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

board  of  trade,  music,  song,  color,  art,  motion  and 
emotion,  everything  that  will  appeal  to  the  senses  of 
men,  and  women,  and  children. 

He  is  a  good  promiser.  He  makes  wonderful  prom- 
ises of  joy  and  satisfaction,  and  always  stipulates 
that  no  one  will  ever  find  out,  and  no  harm  will  result. 
But  promises  must  be  judged  by  the  way  in  which 
they  are  kept.  The  advertisement  must  be  compared 
with  the  finished  product. 

We  will  use  three  illustrations  from  their  allied 
forces  through  which  evil  works  to-day  and  has 
worked  for  many  centuries. 

THE  DRINK  HABIT 

The  Chicago  Home  Herald  tells  about  a  man  who 
was  riding  on  a  street  car.  He  chanced  to  notice  an 
advertisement  in  one  of  the  advertising  spaces  over- 
head, printed  in  bold,  clear  letters :  "Pure  rye  whisky 
— Tones  up  the  body;  brightens  the  intellect;  invig- 
orates the  soul." 

There  was  the  advertisement  and  the  promise.  But 
dropping  his  eyes  involuntarily,  he  saw  on  the  seat 
directly  under  the  advertisement  the  finished  prod- 
uct :  a  drunken  man,  slouched  down  in  the  drunk- 
ard's habitual  attitude;  eyes  bleared,  face  bloated, 
intellect  befuddled,  body  weakened,  soul  destroyed. 
The  finished  product  gave  the  lie  to  the  advertise- 
ment. The  two  are  not  always  brought  together  so 
closely  that  we  can  see  and  judge  as  readily  as  in  this 
case;  but  if  we  keep  our  eyes  open  and  look  far 
enough  we  can  always  see  the  results  of  sin  in  what- 


The  Finished  Product  173 

ever  form  it  may  present  itself  to  solicit  our  patron- 
age. 

While  on  the  streets  of  San  Bernardino,  California, 
not  long  ago,  we  chanced  to  notice  a  saloon  that  bore 
the  proud  title :  "The  Senate."  We  asked  the  question 
of  our  companion:  "Where  is  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives?" I  will  tell  you.  You  will  find  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  saloon  in  the  gutters  and  jails  and 
poorhouses,  and  in  the 'potter's  field.  It  is  so  every- 
where. 

Not  long  ago  while  riding  through  town  we  noticed 
on  a  certain  front  porch  a  great,  bloated,  purple-faced 
wreck  of  humanity.  Some  days  later  a  companion 
pointed  to  the  same  house  and  said:  "That  is  the 
home  of  an  old  saloon  keeper."  We  replied,  "No  need 
to  tell  us  that.  We  have  seen  the  man."  There  he 
was,  the  finished  product  of  his  own  business.  The 
only  difference  between  him  and  his  former  custom- 
ers was  that  while  he  drank  he  sold,  so  that  now  he 
sits  upon  his  own  front  porch,  a  mass  of  misery, 
while  they  stand  at  other  men's  back  doors  begging 
for  a  "hand-out." 

The  dram  shop  is  one  factory  that  is  ashamed  of 
its  own  output.  Habitual  drunkards  are  not  wel- 
comed at  the  saloon.  They  are  driven  away  or  are 
secluded  in  back  yards  behind  high  board  fences,  lest 
the  public  see  the  finished  product  and  judge  thereby. 
The  raw  material  goes  in,  a  boy  or  a  man,  bright, 
active,  strong,  beloved  by  his  family.  After  years 
or  months  the  finished  product  comes  out,  a  besotted, 


174  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

bestial  drunkard,  a  disgrace  to  his  family,  a  menace 
to  society,  spurned  even  by  the  thing  that  has  made 
him  what  he  is. 

THE  "SOCIAL  EVIL" 

Our  next  illustration  is  borrowed  from  a  very  an- 
cient "sociologist"  named  Solomon,  and  refers  to 
forms  of  vice  through  which  the  forces  of  evil  have 
worked  for  centuries  past. 

"For  at  the  window  of  my  house  I  looked  through 
my  casement,  and  beheld  among  the  simple  ones,  I 
discerned  among  the  youths,  a  young  man  void  of 
understanding,  passing  through  the  street  near  her 
corner;  and  he  went  the  way  to  her  house,  in  the 
twilight,  in  the  evening,  in  the  black  and  dark  night ; 
and,  behold,  there  met  him  a  woman  with  the  attire 
of  an  harlot,  and  subtile  of  heart.  (She  is  loud  and 
stubborn ;  her  feet  abide  not  in  her  house ;  now  is  she 
without,  now  in  the  streets,  and  lieth  in  wait  at  every 
corner.)  So  she  caught  him,  and  kissed  him,  and 
with  an  impudent  face  said  unto  him,  I  have  peace 
offerings  with  me;  this  day  have  I  paid  my  vows. 
Therefore  came  I  forth  to  meet  thee,  diligently  to 
seek  thy  face,  and  I  have  found  thee.  I  have  decked 
my  bed  with  coverings  of  tapestry,  with  carved 
works,  with  fine  linen  of  Egypt.  I  have  perfumed  my 
bed  with  myrrh,  aloes,  and  cinnamon.  Come ;  let  us 
take  our  fill  of  love  until  the  morning;  let  us  solace 
ourselves  with  loves.  For  the  goodman  is  not  at  home, 
he  is  gone  a  long  journey;  he  hath  taken  a  bag  of 


The  Finished  Product  175 

money  with  him,  and  will  come  home  at  the  day  ap- 
pointed."—Proverbs  7 :  6-20. 

There  was  the  lure  and  the  promise;  music  and 
light  and  beauty  and  laughter.  There  was  to  be 
great  pleasure  in  sin.  No  one  would  ever  know — the 
good  man  of  the  house  was  gone  away,  etc.  It  is  the 
old  story:  splendid  advertising,  fine  promises,  the 
bringing  to  bear  on  man  of  the  most  subtle,  powerful, 
and  dangerous  appeal — the  appeal  of  sex  to  sensu- 
ality. But  now  note  the  result : 

"With  her  much  fair  speech  she  caused  him  to 
yield,  with  the  flattery  of  her  lips  she  forced  him. 
He  goeth  after  her  straightway,  as  an  ox  goeth  to 
the  slaughter,  or  as  a  fool  to  the  correction  of  the 
stocks ;  till  a  dart  strike  through  his  liver ;  as  a  bird 
hasteth  to  the  snare,  and  knoweth  not  that  it  is  for 
his  life.  Hearken  unto  me  now  therefore,  0  ye  chil- 
dren, and  attend  to  the  words  of  my  mouth.  Let  not 
thy  heart  decline  to  her  ways,  go  not  astray  in  her 
paths.  For  she  hath  cast  down  many  wounded,  yea, 
many  strong  men  have  been  slain  by  her.  Her  house 
is  the  way  to  hell,  going  down  to  the  chambers  of 
death."— Proverbs  7:  21-27. 

The  natural  result  of  the  social  evil  in  all  its  forms 
is  disease  and  death — death  both  natural  and  spirit- 
ual. Many  strong  men  and  many  beautiful  women 
have  been  wounded  or  slain  by  it.  The  finished 
product  as  it  finds  spiritual  expression  in  blasted 
and  lecherous  souls,  physical  expression  in  hospital 
wards  and  on  operating  tables,  and  social  expression 


176  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

in  ruined  homes  and  degenerate  posterity,  is  too 
awful  to  look  upon  with  equanimity;  yet  he  wno 
reads  the  advertisement  should  look  beneath  it  for 
the  finished  product. 

MONEY  MADNESS  GREED  FOR  GAIN 

Our  next  illustration  is  taken  from  the  teachings 
of  the  incomparable  Master  Teacher.  It  deals  with 
the  lure  of  wealth  through  which  evil  has  long 
worked : 

"And  he  said  unto  them,  Take  heed,  and  beware  of 
covetousness ;  for  a  man's  life  consisteth  not  in  the 
abundance  of  the  things  which  he  possesseth.  And 
he  spake  a  parable  unto  them,  saying,  The  ground  of 
a  certain  rich  man  brought  forth  plentifully ;  and  he 
thought  within  himself,  saying,  What  shall  I  do,  be- 
cause I  have  no  room  where  to  bestow  my  fruits? 
And  he  said,  This  will  I  do ;  I  will  pull  down  my  barns 
and  build  greater;  and  there  will  I  bestow  all  my 
fruits,  and  my  goods.  And  I  will  say  to  my  soul, 
Soul,  thou  hast  much  goods  laid  up  for  many  years; 
take  thine  ease,  eat,  drink,  and  be  merry/' — Luke 
12 :  17-21,  Inspired  Translation. 

There  is  the  advertisement  and  the  promise :  long 
life,  plenty,  bigger  barns,  finer  houses,  better  clothes, 
opportunity  to  eat  and  drink  and  be  merry,  ease, 
luxury,  power.  But  let  us  hear  the  conclusion  of  such 
a  life : 

"But  God  said  unto  him,  Thou  fool!  This  night 
thy  soul  shall  be  required  of  thee;  then  whose  shall 
those  things  be  which  thou  hast  provided?  So  shall 


The  Finished  Product  177 

it  be  with  him  who  layeth  up  treasure  for  himself, 
and  is  not  rich  toward  God."— Luke  12:  22,  23. 

Everywhere  evil  appeals  to  men  and  women ;  offer- 
ing money  as  the  one  supreme  consideration,  the  uni- 
versal solvent,  the  thing  to  be  obtained  at  any  sacri- 
fice. In  the  service  of  Mammon  men  lie,  and  cheat, 
and  steal,  and  murder.  And  what  is  the  result  ?  They 
do  not  get  the  pleasure  that  was  promised  them. 
Only  misery  and  remorse  remain.  And  at  the  end 
comes  the  summons:  'Thou  fool!  This  night  thy 
soul  shall  be  required  of  thee ;  then  whose  shall  those 
things  be  which  thou  hast  provided?"  They  come 
face  to  face  with  the  proposition:  "What  shall  it 
profit  a  man,  if  he  gain  the  whole  world  and  lose  his 
own  soul  ?" 

WHEN  IT  IS  FINISHED 

Degradation  of  character  is  not  instantaneous.  The 
power  of  evil  does  not  turn  out  a  finished  product  in 
a  day.  It  warps,  twists,  and  hammers,  and  bends  a 
man  into  shape  so  gradually  that  perhaps  he  does 
not  know  the  process  through  which  he  is  passing. 
The  little  changes  may  not  appear  so  bad,  each 
viewed  by  itself.  But  the  finished  product !  That  is 
the  thing  by  which  we  must  judge  corrupt  influence. 
The  finished  product  is  a  ruined  and  debauched  man, 
selfish,  sensual,  wicked,  desperate. 

"Now  the  works  of  the  flesh  are  manifest,  which 
are  these:  adultery,  fornication,  uncleanness,  las- 
civiousness,  idolatry,  witchcraft,  hatred,  variance, 
emulations,  wrath,  strife,  seditions,  heresies,  envy- 


178  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

ings,  murders,  drunkenness,  revelings,  and  such 
like."— Galatians  5: 19-21. 

"Then  when  lust  hath  conceived,  it  bringeth  forth 
sin:  and  sin,  when  it  is  finished,  bringeth  forth 
death." — James  1 : 15. 

"Sow  an  act,  and  you  reap  a  habit;  sow  a  habit, 
and  you  reap  a  character;  sow  a  character,  and  you 
reap  a  destiny." — Broadman. 

When  finally  such  a  soul  stands  before  God  it  will 
be  judged  by  its  deeds,  that  is  true;  but  the  thing 
that  the  man  is,  himself,  will  be  sufficient  to  con- 
demn him.  What  we  are,  that  is  what  counts.  What 
we  are,  no  one  can  get  away  from  that !  The  finished 
product  before  the  judgment  bar  of  reason  condemns 
or  justifies  itself! 

GOD   ADVERTISES   TOO 

The  Devil  is  a  good  advertiser;  but  God  is  also  a 
good  advertiser,  and  he  makes  many  promises,  all  of 
which  are  unchangeable  and  true.  He  is  working 
everywhere,  primarily  through  his  church,  second- 
arily through  many  other  agencies,  to  reach  men  and 
lead  them  to  obey  him.  There  are  a  few  little  elec- 
trical signs  along  Broadway  in  New  York  City,  but 
God  is  still  the  great  advertiser.  Go  out  into  the 
open  any  clear  night  and  you  may  see  thousands  of 
miles  of  brilliantly  blazing  display  advertisements," 
blue  background  of  eternal,  infinite  space,  studded 
with  suns  and  planets  and  stars  unnumbered,  and  all 
declaring  the  glory  of  God. 


The  Finished  Product  179 

"The  heavens  declare  the  glory  of  God;  and  the 
firmament  showeth  his  handiwork." — Psalms  19 :  1. 

One  cannot  look  at  the  stars  without  feeling  an 
impulse  to  do  better.  We  cannot  see  or  read  of  a 
brave  or  noble  deed  without  feeling  a  desire  to  be 
brave  and  noble.  We  cannot  come  in  contact  with  a 
good  man  or  woman  without  feeling  an  uplift  of 
spirit.  In  all  things  and  through  all  things  good  and 
true  God  announces  himself  to  us  at  every  turn. 
Last,  but  not  least,  his  word  is  to  be  found  to-day  in 
almost  every  home  in  every  civilized  land,  to  be  read 
freely  by  those  who  care  to  even  feel  after  that 
which  is  higher ;  and  from  cover  to  cover  the  Bible  is 
an  invitation  and  a  promise. 

"Come  unto  me,  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy 
laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest.  Take  my  yoke  upon 
you,  and  learn  of  me;  for  I  am  meek  and  lowly  in 
heart :  and  ye  shall  find  rest  unto  your  souls.  For  my 
yoke  is  easy,  and  my  burden  is  light." — Matthew 
11:28-30. 

"And  the  Spirit  and  the  bride  say,  Come.  And  let 
him  that  heareth  say,  Come.  And  let  him  that  is 
athirst  come.  And  whosoever  will,  let  him  take  the 
water  of.  life  freely."— Revelation  22 :  17. 

GOD'S    WORKSHOP    THE    WORLD;    HIS    FINISHING 
ROOM    THE  CHURCH 

We  sometimes  feel  that  God  is  confining  his  opera- 
tions to  the  church ;  but  it  is  said  of  Jesus  that  he  is 
"the  true  light,  which  lighteneth  every  man  that 
cometh  into  the  world"  (John  1:9).  God's  workshop 


180  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

is  the  world;  his  working  day  lasts  for  all  time.  Call 
the  roll  of  great  and  good  men  of  all  ages.  Every 
one  of  them  was  great  and  good  because  he  lived  in 
harmony  with  some  part  of  the  teachings  of  Jesus. 
He  may  not  have  known  the  gospel  in  its  fullness; 
but  he  lived  by  that  which  he  knew.  Some  time  these 
men  will  know  the  law  in  its  fullness. 

But  if  the  world  is  God's  workshop,  the  church  is 
his  finishing  room :  "The  Lord  added  to  the  church 
daily  such  as  should  be  saved."  Perfection  must 
ultimately  be  found  under  gospel  administration  and 
in  the  church  of  Jesus  Christ. 

And  so  all  through  the  work  of  God,  as  applied  to 
men  of  varied  abilities  and  characteristics,  if  we  will 
we  can  see  the  glory  of  his  work.  The  finished 
product  speaks  for  itself.  It  is  the  strongest  argu- 
ment that  can  be  put  forward  in  defense  of  the  forces 
that  work  for  good.  It  accords  with  the  advertise- 
ment; it  fulfills  the  promise.  Yet  to  us  is  not  fully 
revealed  all  that  may  be  included  in  the  term,  "the 
finished  product."  We  must  use  the  words  in  a 
qualified  sense,  for  it  is  written:  "It  doth  not  yet 
appear  what  we  shall  be :  but  we  know  that,  when  he 
shall  appear,  we  shall  be  like  him." 


M 


BLUE  PENCIL  NOTES 

ARK  TWAIN  pictures  Adam  as  brooding 
over  Eve's  grave  and  saying:  "Whereso- 
ever she  was,  there  was  Eden!" 


Don't  change  your  spiritual  gear  to  catch  up  with 
every  fad  that  passes  you.  Some  of  them  run  "on 
high"  for  a  little  while  and  then  lie  in  the  ditch  a 
long  time.  The  only  true  peacemaker  is  the  old  gos- 
pel car. 

Trouble  is  said  to  be  a  very  efficient  teacher.  But 
most  of  us  are  such  dull  pupils  that  we  must  remain 
a  long  time  under  tutelage. 

The  church  is  a  bank.  We  take  out  of  it  what  we 
put  into  it — with  interest.  But  if  we  do  not  make  a 
deposit  we  cannot  take  anything  out. 

The  trouble  with  the  indirect  sermon  is  that  it 
does  not  start  from  any  particular  point — it  does  not 
lead  up  to  any  special  place — and  it  does  not  pass 
anything  of  interest  on  the  way. 

Avoid  the  sermon  that,  like  the  sectarian  God,  is 
without  body,  parts,  or  passions — "whose  center  is 
everywhere  and  its  circumference  nowhere." 

The  emblems  of  the  Lord's  Supper  seem  even  to 
cast  a  certain  sanctity  about  those  who  serve  them. 

181 


182  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

But  they  cannot  make  that  clean  which  is  unclean  or 
holy  which  is  unholy.  So  the  Lord  has  commanded 
that  those  who  bear  the  vessels  of  the  Lord  shall  be 
clean.  That  means  plenty  of  soap  and  water  on  the 
outside  and  good  clean  living  on  the  inside. 

If  you  are  an  elder,  heed  a  word  of  counsel.  Do  not 
often  indulge  yourself  to  tell  others  of  flattering 
financial  offers  that  the  world  has  made  for  your 
services,  or  the  success  that  you  might  have  made 
in  secular  matters.  This  for  four  reasons.  1st.  You 
do  not  intend  to  boast,  but  you  may  be  understood  as 
boasting.  The  world  has  nothing  to  offer  worth  con- 
sideration as  compared  with  that  which  the  church 
gives.  Paul  boasted  only  in  the  work  of  Jesus. 
Rome  offered  him  nothing  worthy  of  a  second 
thought.  2d.  It  may  have  the  appearance  of  giving 
thoughtful  consideration  to  a  bribe.  3d.  Most  of  us 
owe  all  that  we  are  to  the  church.  It  educated  us, 
gave  us  our  ideals,  and  developed  our  abilities.  They 
belong  to  the  church.  We  hold  them  in  trust.  They 
are  not  at  auction.  4th.  In  some  cases  these  dreams 
are  all  moonshine.  Perhaps  they  are  in  your  case. 
Many  who  have  left  the  church  with  the  ambition  to 
make  a  name  in  the  world  have  made  a  flat  and  dis- 
mal failure.  With  God  you  may  be  making  a  success. 
Without  him  you  might  be  just  "another  failure." 

A  mother  complained  because  her  hungry  baby 
cried.  We  suggested  that  she  reason  with  it.  No 
results.  Then  we  suggested  that  she  try  Christian 


Blue  Pencil  Notes  183 

Science  on  the  little  thing.  Again,  no  results.  But  a 
bottle  of  good  warm  milk  soon  brought  peace. 
Strange  that  children  prefer  milk  to  the  windy  as- 
sertions of  Christian  Science — but  of  such  is  the 
kingdom  of  heaven. 

If  I  were  to  paint  a  picture  of  the  three  graces,  I 
would  not  picture  Faith  looking  with  longing  eyes 
into  the  dim  future.  I  would  picture  Faith  at  work. 
Let  Hope  scan  the  future.  And  I  would  not  depict 
Charity,  the  greatest  of  the  three,  in  the  act  of  giv- 
ing alms,  but  rather  in  the  act  of  giving  herself. 

Kipling  relates  a  legend  about  the  great  King  Solo- 
mon. It  seems  that  Solomon  made  a  grand  feast  and 
with  much  pomp  and  flourish  invited  all  the  animals 
in  all  the  world  to  come  and  eat.  But  lo,  when  the 
dinner  was  ready,  an  animal  came  up  out  of  the  sea 
and  ate  it  all  at  one  bite.  When  Solomon  asked  him 
who  he  was,  he  said,  "0  king,  live  forever.  I  am  the 
smallest  of  thirty  thousand  brothers  who  live  at  the 
bottom  of  the  sea.  My  brothers  sent  me  to  inquire 
when  dinner  will  be  ready.  They  will  be  along  pres- 
ently." The  king  said  it  was  a  lesson  to  him  not  to 
attempt  to  "show  off."  If  we  are  inclined  to  "show 
off,"  let  us  remember  the  thirty  thousand  brothers. 

When  Jesus  was  here  he  beheld  the  multitude  and 
had  compassion  on  them.  He  wept  over  them.  Not 
a  heart  in  all  the  assembly  that  thronged  him  but 
had  its  own  cares  and  sorrows.  And  he  saw  into 


184  To  the  Average  Young  Man 

every  heart  and  sympathized  with  every  sorrow.  He 
was  a  man  of  sorrows  and  acquainted  with  grief. 

I  do  not  think  that  Jesus,  being  a  part  of  the  God- 
head, and  filled  with  infinite  wisdom,  sympathy,  and 
love,  needed  to  come  down  to  earth  and  suffer  with  us 
in  order  to  understand  our  griefs.  But  it  was  neces- 
sary for  him  to  come  in  order  that  we  might  under- 
stand that  he  understands.  Otherwise  we  would  not 
believe  that  even  God  himself  could  understand  our 
sorrows  and  temptations.  But  his  life,  from  his  birth 
in  the  stable  to  his  death  on  the  cross,  is  a  compelling 
testimony  that  he  understands. 


BOOK    FOUR 


A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 


THE  DEAD  NURSE 

The  sick,  the  broken,  the  distressed, 
Whose  brows  her  gentle  hands  have  pressed, 
Whose  wounds  her  skillful  fingers  dressed, 
These  rise  to-day  to  call  her  blest. 

When  God  commanded  us  to  build 
A  house  of  healing,  unfulfilled 
Had  been  the  task,  but  for  the  guild 
Of  women  nurses,  kind  and  skilled. 

The  nurse's  cap,  the  nurse's  gown, 
The  uniform  that  she  lays  down, 
Are  like  that  robe  of  world  renown — 
Christ's  seamless  robe  with  glory  crowned. 

No  more  she  hastes  through  the  long  hall, 

To  ward,  or  sick  room,  serving  all; 

But  heeding  her  Physician's  call, 

Her  "special"  takes  where  shadows  fall. 

She  challenged  Death,  his  presence  near, 
In  many  vigils,  long  and  drear; 
So  knew  his  face,  but  had  no  fear 
When  her  last  summons  sounded  clear. 

And  entering  the  low,  green  door, 
That  all  men  enter,  evermore 
She  consecrates  the  name  she  bore 
And  the  white  uniform  she  wore. 

And  if  her  ministry  to  pain 
Shall  light  in  other  souls  again, 
The  lamp  of  service,  it  is  plain 
She  neither  lived  nor  died  in  vain. 


A   CUP   OF   WATER   FROM   FLOOD 
TIDE 

A  CERTAIN  celebrated  actor  was  entertaining  a 
friend  at  Santa  Monica.  The  friend  was  a 
faddist  and  his  latest  fad  was  to  drink  a  glass 
of  sea  water  from  the  incoming  tide  once  each  day. 
This  was  supposed  to  cure  his  indigestion. 

The  two  were  walking  along  the  beach  one  morn- 
ing, and  the  friend  had  just  finished  his  glass  of 
water.  With  the  predisposition  of  faddists  to  go  to 
the  extreme,  he  looked  longingly  at  the  empty  glass 
and  said,  "I  wonder  if  I  might  take  another." 

The  actor  looked  at  the  inrolling  waste  of  waters 
and  replied:  "Well,  I  don't  think  that  it  would  be 
missed." 

There  was  no  questioning  the  all-sufficiency  of  the 
inrushing  tide.  It  had  all  old  ocean's  bulk  and  power 
behind  it.  The  only  question  was  as  to  the  capacity 
and  needs  of  the  man. 

There  is  never  any  question  as  to  the  power  and 
sufficiency  of  God's  blessing  in  every  realm.  In  all 
things  it  is  adequate  to  the  willingness  of  the  indi- 
vidual to  receive  and  his  capacity  to  take  and  use. 

The  law  in  spiritual  things  as  well  as  in  temporal 
is  that  every  man  shall  receive  according  to  his 
needs  and  wants,  inasmuch  as  his  wants  are  just. 

That  must  be  what  Paul  had  in  mind  when  he  said 
187 


188  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

that  every  man  should  receive  the  manifestation  of 
the  Spirit,  but  each  in  his  own  way  and  measure : 

"Now  there  are  diversities  of  gifts,  but  the  same 
spirit.  And  there  are  differences  of  administrations, 
but  the  same  Lord.  And  there  are  diversities  of 
operations,  but  it  is  the  same  God  which  worketh  all 
in  all.  But  the  manifestation  of  the  Spirit  is  given  to 
every  man  to  profit  withal.  For  to  one  is  given  by 
the  Spirit  the  word  of  wisdom ;  to  another  the  word 
of  knowledge  by  the  same  Spirit;  to  another  faith 
by  the  same  Spirit ;  to  another  the  gifts  of  healing  by 
the  same  Spirit ;  to  another  the  working  of  miracles ; 
to  another  prophecy;  to  another  discerning  of  spir- 
its; to  another  divers  kinds  of  tongues;  to  another 
the  interpretation  of  tongues:  but  all  these  worketh 
that  one  and  the  selfsame  Spirit,  dividing  to  every 
man  severally  as  he  will.  For  as  the  body  is  one,  and 
hath  many  members,  and  all  the  members  of  that 
one  body,  being  many,  are  one  body:  so  also  is 
Christ.  For  by  one  Spirit  are  we  all  baptized  into 
one  body,  whether  we  be  Jews  or  Gentiles,  whether 
we  be  bond  or  free ;  and  have  been  all  made  to  drink 
into  one  Spirit." — 1  Corinthians  12 :  4-13. 

God  had  this  in  mind  when  he  said :  "All  are  called 
according  to  the  gifts  of  God  unto  them."  The  gifts 
of  God  are  adequate  to  the  needs  of  every  man,  yes, 
even  to  his  wants,  when  they  are  not  unjust. .  Each 
man  may  receive  in  abundance,  nor  does  he  thereby 
perceptibly  diminish  the  flood  tide  or  impoverish  any 
other  human  being.  There  is  no  room  for  jealousy 


A  Cup  of  Water  from  Flood  Tide  189 

among  those  who  walk  by  the  side  of  the  incoming 
tide. 

And  there  is  a  beauty  and  glory  in  the  typically 
Latter  Day  Saint  thought  that  the  tide  is  still  set- 
ting in  every  day.  Just  as  it  did  in  the  days  of  Paul, 
or  in  the  days  of  which  it  is  written : 

"Moreover,  brethren,  I  would  not  that  ye  should 
be  ignorant,  how  that  all  our  fathers  were  under  the 
cloud,  and  all  passed  through  the  sea;  and  were  all 
baptized  unto  Moses  in  the  cloud  and  in  the  sea ;  and 
did  all  eat  the  same  spiritual  meat ;  and  did  all  drink 
the  same  spiritual  drink;  for  they  drank  of  that 
spiritual  rock  that  followed  them :  and  that  rock  was 
Christ."— 1  Corinthians  10:  1-4. 


A  CUP  AND  A  LOAF  FOR  THE 
MASTER 

JESUS  is  not  with  us  to-day,  hungry,  thirsty, 
weary,  homeless,  that  we  may  administer  to  his 
needs.  But  through  service  to  others  he  opens 
up  to  us  an  avenue  by  which  we  may  hand  to  him 
the  cup  and  the  loaf.  He  has  said: 

"For  I  was  an  hungered,  and  ye  gave  me  meat ;  I 
was  thirsty,  and  ye  gave  me  drink ;  I  was  a  stranger, 
and  ye  took  me  in ;  naked,  and  ye  clothed  me ;  I  was 
sick,  and  ye  visited  me :  I  was  in  prison,  and  ye  came 
unto  me.  Then  shall  the  righteous  answer  him,  say- 
ing, Lord,  when  saw  we  thee  an  hungered,  and  fed 
thee?  or  thirsty,  and  gave  thee  drink?  When  saw 
we  thee  a  stranger,  and  took  thee  in?  or  naked,  and 
clothed  thee?  Or  when  saw  we  thee  sick,  or  in 
prison,  and  came  unto  thee  ?  And  the  King  shall  an- 
swer and  say  unto  them,  -Verily  I  say  unto  you,  In- 
asmuch as  ye  have  done  it  unto  one  of  the  least  of 
these  my  brethren,  ye  have  done  it  unto  me." — 
Matthew  25 :  35-40. 

The  Salvation  Army,  once  despised  and  ridiculed, 
has  won  the  respect  of  the  religious  world  by  deeds 
of  mercy  quite  similar  to  those  mentioned  here. 

A  BOX  OF  ORANGES 

As  I  have  said,  Jesus  is  not  sick  to-day  that  we 
may  visit  him.  But  thousands  of  poor  human  be- 

190 


A  Cup  and  a  Loaf  for  the  Master  191 

ings  are  sick.  Were  you  ever  visited  when  you  were 
sick?  With  the  right  kind  of  a  visit?  A  little  over 
a  year  ago  I  was  sick  on  a  lonely  beach  in  California. 
And  a  good  brother  by  the  name  of  Will  Mills  used 
to  drive  down  often  and  bring  some  of  the  brethren 
to  see  me.  He  would  make  a  round  trip  of  perhaps 
sixty  or  more  miles  just  to  take  me  out  riding  four 
or  five  blocks,  for  that  was  all  I  could  stand.  And 
usually  when  he  was  about  to  leave  for  home  he 
would  happen  to  think  of  a  box  of  oranges  for  which 
he  seemed  to  have  no  other  use,  so  he  would  leave 
them  with  me. 

WILL   MILLS'S    SERMON 

That  man  was  an  ordained  man.  But  I  doubt  if 
he  could  preach  a  sermon  to  save  his  life.  That  was 
his  sermon.  Some  time  I  imagine  he  will  stand  be- 
fore the  throne  of  God  and  Jesus  will  say,  "Brother 
Mills,  I  was  sick  and  you  visited  me."  And  I  can 
imagine  his  look  of  surprise  as  he  asks,  "When  saw 
I  you  sick  and  visited  you." 

And  the  answer  will  come  back,  "You  remember 
when  Brother  Elbert  was  sick  at  Hermosa  Beach.  In- 
asmuch as  you  have  done  it  unto  one  of  the  very  least 
of  these  my  brethren  you  have  done  it  unto  me.  I 
tasted  your  oranges;  they  were  sweet.  I  rode  with 
you  in  your  automobile." 

I  have  watched  the  nurses  at  their  work  in  the 
Sanitarium  at  Independence.  And  instead  of  the 
emaciated  form  upon  the  bed,  to  which  they  admin- 
istered, I  have  seen  the  form  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth. 


192  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

Yes,  and  I,  too,  have  received  their  ministrations, 
and  know  that  if  I  was  worthy  to  be  called  one  of 
the  least  of  the  brethren  I  was  in  Jesus'  stead  and 
their  reward  is  sure. 

PRAYERS  FOR  HUNGRY  MEN 

Jesus  is  not  hungry  now,  that  we  may  feed  him. 
But  others  are  hungry.  I  read  not  long  ago  a  little 
account  of  how  the  Salvation  Army  lassies  work  in 
their  dugouts,  among  the  bursting  shells,  just  back 
of  the  firing  line,  baking  pies  and  krullers.  And  in 
the  morning  as  the  soldiers  come  from  the  trenches, 
each  boy  as  he  marches  by  receives  from  the  kindly 
hands  of  a  Salvation  Army  lassie,  three  hot  krullers 
and  a  half  of  an  apple  pie.  I  like  apple  pie,  but  I 
presume  that  under  those  conditions  apple  pie  tastes 
better  to  the  soldier  boys  than  it  ever  did  to  you  or 
to  me.  There  was  a  poem  with  the  story.  One  verse 
runs  like  this : 


'Prayers  are  good,  at  proper  times, 

As  every  soldier  knows, 
But  coming  from  the  trenches, 
It's  pie,  not  prayer,  that  goes/ 


I  do  not  think  that  sentiment  irreverent.  I  think 
that  there  are  times  when  it  is  better  to  feed  a  man 
than  to  pray  for  him.  James  didn't  like  the  idea  of 
turning  a  man  away  with  a  prayer  and  an  empty 
stomach.  Then,  if  we  can  put  the  man  in  the  way 
of  earning  his  next  meal,  if  he  is  destitute,  we  have 
done  real  constructive  work. 


A  Cup  and  a  Loaf  for  the  Master  193 

A  VISIT  TO  THE  PRISON   HOUSE 

Jesus  is  not  in  prison  now  that  we  may  visit  him,. 
But  once  in  a  while  some  poor  mortal  falls  into 
trouble.  Not  long  ago  a  brother  in  one  of  our  larger 
cities  in  a  time  of  temptation  diverted  the  funds  of 
an  institution  to  his  own  pockets.  He  was  put  into 
jail  and  was  about  to  be  sentenced  to  the  peniten- 
tiary. Brother called  upon  him,  and  later  upon 

the  bankers  whose  institution  he  had  defrauded.  He 
said  to  the  bankers,  "Come,  let  us  go  and  see  this 
man."  They  were  astonished.  Why  should  they  go 
to  jail  to  see  the  man?  He  had  taken  their  money. 
They  had  put  him  in  jail.  The  matter  was  ended. 

But  they  were  persuaded  to  go.  They  talked  with 
the  man.  They  heard  about  his  family.  The  case 
was  no  longer  abstract.  It  became  concrete.  The  in- 
cident was  humanized.  In  the  end  they  consented, 
upon  having  their  interests  guaranteed,  that  the 
judge  should  parole  this  man  to  Brother  -  -  and 
permit  him  to  have  another  chance  to  make  good 
and  care  for  his  family.  The  interests  of  society  are 
best  safeguarded  by  the  reformation  of  the  offender. 
Jails  are  the  poorest  guarantee. 

Here  was  a  case  where  one  in  prison  was  visited 
to  some  purpose.  There  is  a  story  to  the  effect  that 
the  prisoners  at  Fort  Madison  were  visited  so  often 
by  ministers  who  so  invariably  preached  from  the 
text  of  the  prodigal  son  that  when  the  prisoners 
saw  a  preacher  appear  upon  a  Sunday  morning  they 
would  say,  "Here  comes  another  prodigal  son."  But 
7 


194  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

in  this  instance  something  better  than  a  homily  was 
delivered.  Is  it  too  much  to  say  that  Jesus  himself 
was  visited  in  that  prison  ? 

THE  HOMELESS  SAVIOR 

Jesus  is  not  naked  and  hungry  now.  The  seam- 
less garment  has  given  place  to  robes  of  glory.  He 
is  not  homeless.  He  dwells  on  high.  Yet  he  says, 
"I  was  a  stranger  [homeless],  and  ye  took  me  in." 
One  of  the  saddest  plaints  that  ever  ascended  from 
human  lips  sprang  from  the  homesick  and  lonely 
heart  of  Jesus  Christ  when  he  said,  "The  foxes  have 
holes  and  the  birds  of  the  air  have  nests;  but  the 
Son  of  Man  hath  not  where  to  lay  his  head."  These 
missionaries,  some  of  them,  have  tasted  of  that  ex- 
perience, perhaps. 

We  cannot  open  our  door  to  Jesus  now  and  say  to 
him,  "Come  in  and  lie  in  my  bed."  But  we  can 
sustain  the  Children's  Home  there  on  the  hill,  and 
homeless  little  children  can  go  there  and  find  shelter. 
And  those  who  have  no  children  of  their  own  can 
open  their  homes  to  children,  and  as  one  has  said, 
"love  into  maturity  those  whom  others  have  loved 
into  life."  And  in  that  way  Jesus  will  come  in  at  our 
door  and  sleep  in  our  bed. 

(Note:  In  the  foregoing  an  effort  was  made  to 
emphasize  the  principle  of  service,  perhaps  some- 
what to  the  neglect  of  theological  niceties  of  inter- 
pretation. The  line  between  the  "brethren"  and  the 
"righteous"  may  have  been  obscured  at  times.  But 
I  hold  that  if  God  will  reward  such  works  so  glori- 


A  Cup  and  a  Loaf  for  the  Master  195 

ously  when  done  by  "righteous"  men  of  the  world, 
he  will  also  reward  them  when  done  by  the  "breth- 
ren." Again,  it  may  be  urged  that  in  the  illustration 
of  feeding  the  soldiers,  many  of  those  served  were 
not  among  Christ's  brethren.  But  I  hold  again  that 
it  would  be  a  mistake  to  always  demand  a  man's  bap- 
tismal certificate  before  rendering  an  act  of  service. 
Paul  said  to  do  good  to  all  men,  but  especially  to  the 
household  of  faith.  The  work  of  the  Salvation  Army 
and  the  Red  Cross  is  essentially  Christlike,  no  mat- 
ter who  may  be  the  recipient.  Again,  it  may  be 
urged  that  the  man  in  prison  was  guilty  of  sin  and 
so  could  not  be  held  to  represent  Jesus  in  any  way. 
Would  Jesus  visit  only  those  who  are  stainless?  I 
read  that  he  visited  the  spirits  in  prison  who  were 
disobedient  under  the  preaching  of  Noah.  He  set 
up  God's  mercy  seat  in  hell.  So  perhaps  he  would 
not  refuse  to  visit  a  defaulter  or  decline  to  recognize 
a  visit  made  under  such  circumstances.) 


WHAT    IS   A   MAN   WORTH? 

A  man  went  down  to  Panama, 

Where  many  a  man  had  died, 
To  ^slit  the  sliding  mountains, 

And  lift  the  eternal  tide: 
A  man  stood  up  in  Panama, 

And  the  mountains  stood  aside. 

The  Power  that  wrought  the  tide  and  peak 

Wrought  mightier  the  seer; 
And  the  One  who  made  the  Isthmus 

He  made  the  engineer.  .  .  . 

— Percy  Mackaye. 

JUDGING  from  the  acts  of  a  great  many  men, 
they  do  not  think  themselves  worth  much  to 
God,  to  themselves,  or  to  the  community.  They 
are  willing  to  sell  themselves  for  a  barrel,  more  or 
less,  of  alcohol.  We  do  not  know  how  much  alcohol 
one  can  get  away  with  before  it  gets  away  with  him, 
but  at  best  it  is  a  bad  bargain.  The  man  who  is 
trying  so  hard  to  break  into  a  drunkard's  grave 
should  ask  himself,  Am  I  not  getting  the  worst  of 
this  deal?  I  am  bartering  away  body  and  soul,  the 
respect  of  my  friends  and  the  peace  of  my  family; 
and  I  get  in  return  rags,  hunger,  filth,  bruises,  in- 
sults, and  an  amount  of  drink  proportionate  to  my 
swinishness. 

Others,  both  men  and  women,  put  themselves  and 
their  home  life  in  the  pawnshop  for  the  privilege  of 

196 


What  Is  a  Man  Worth?  197 

being  fashionable  and  drinking  from  the  cup  of 
pleasure.  Some  go  for  a  cash  consideration,  as  in  the 
case  of  some  of  our  senators,  and  post  office  officials, 
and  judges,  and  mayors.  Probably  the  proportion  of 
guilty  ones  who  have  been  exposed  is  small. 

Then  there  are  many  in  business  who  are  dealing 
in  short  weights.  The  fourteen  ounces  of  meat  that 
they  sell  for  a  pound  is  not  all  they  have  sold.  They 
have  sold  themselves  and  have  gone  for  the  price  of 
two  ounces  of  meat. 

Man  prizes  himself  and  his  honor  too  lightly ;  and 
if  himself,  certainly  others.  So  long  as  men  will  sell 
themselves  for  drink,  or  drugs,  or  money,  or  favors, 
men  will  be  found  to  profit  by  their  foolishness. 

Sixty  thousand  men  was  the  price  of  Port  Arthur. 
These  men  were  the  pick  of  the  two  nations  who 
fought  over  the  walls  of  that  doomed  city.  They 
were  the  pick  physically,  and  in  many  cases  men- 
tally. And  what  were  they  given  for?  That  Rus- 
sia might  seek  to  add  somewhat  to  her  domain  at  a 
time  when  she  still  had  undeveloped  territory  that 
makes  the  United  States  look  small. 

So  long  as  dirt  means  more  than  flesh  and  blood, 
there  will  be  war — national,  civil,  and  individual. 

The  doctrine  of  total  depravity  used  to  be  a  favor- 
ite one  with  the  churches,  and  it  must  have  been 
eminently  pleasing  to  Satan.  We  read  that  man  was 
made  in  the  image  of  God.  In  what  sense?  In  a 
physical  sense  ?  Well,  no ;  because  we  have  been  told 
that  God  is  a  being  without  a  body,  or  parts,  or  pas- 


198  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

sions.  Man  has  these.  Then  it  must  be  according 
to  that  dogma  that  man  is  in  the  image  of  God  spirit- 
ually and  mentally;  and  at  the  same  time  he  is  by 
nature  and  inclination  totally  depraved  ?  No  wonder 
that  God  said  those  creeds  were  abominable ! 

That  very  act  of  creation  shows  the  price  God  sets 
on  men.  He  placed  upon  men  the  stamp  and  image 
of  the  divine  form;  and  certainly  he  did  not  do  that 
to  worthless  metal.  Man  was  the  crowning  act  of 
his  creation,  the  culminating  revelation  of  God's 
power  and  majesty;  and  we  are  told  in  the  eighth 
Psalm  that  he  was  created  only  a  little  lower  than 
the  angels  and  crowned  with  glory  and  honor. 

He  was  in  the  image  of  God  but  on  a  lower  plane ; 
just  as  a  child  may  resemble  his  father  in  form  and 
disposition,  yet  be  but  a  child.  Man's  growth  has 
been  perverted,  and  perhaps  some  few  may  become 
totally  depraved ;  but  did  you  ever  see  one  who  you 
dared  to  say  was  that  ? 

Let  us  rather  preach  the  dignity  and  worth  of  man 
as  something  too  valuable  to  be  used  for  a  base  end. 
Jesus  said,  "Are  not  five  sparrows  sold  for  two  far- 
things, and  not  one  of  them  is  forgotten  before  God." 
Even  the  sparrow  is  God's  handiwork,  and  when  it 
falls  to  the  ground,  wounded,  the  same  natural  law 
begins  to  heal  it  that  heals  you  of  your  bruises.  It 
is  not  forgotten.  Then  the  point  of  the  lesson  is 
driven  home,  "Ye  are  of  more  value  than  many  spar- 
rows." If  it  be  a  tragedy  when  the  sparrow  falls, 
how  much  more  a  tragedy  when  man  falls ! 


What  Is  a  Man  Worth?  199 

The  parables  of  the  lost  sheep,  the  lost  piece  of 
money,  and  the  prodigal  son,  were  all  designed  to 
teach  the  worth  of  the  individual  and  the  pains  God 
takes  to  save  him,  and  the  joy  there  is  in  heaven 
when  he  is  saved. 

The  parable  of  the  prodigal  son  teaches  that  it  is 
seldom  too  late  to  break  a  bad  bargain;  make  the 
best  terms  we  can;  get  back  home;  make  the  very 
most  we  can  of  ourselves.  When  the  prodigal  got 
into  serious  trouble  "he  came  to  himself";  he  had 
been  a  little  bit  deranged  before.  He  saw  that  he 
could  do  better  than  herd  swine  and  eat  husks. 

In  Luke  we  read  of  a  rich  man  who  said  to  his  soul, 
"Take  thine  ease,  eat,  drink,  and  be  merry."  All  that 
he  thought  he  was  good  for  was  to  eat  and  drink  and 
have  a  good  time.  God  said  that  man  was  a  fool.  The 
beasts  are  satisfied  to  eat  and  drink  and  take  their 
ease ;  but  a  wise  man  should  have  a  higher  ideal. 

The  sacrifice  that  Christ* made,  the  suffering  he 
bore,  prove  the  value  he  set  upon  men.  Yes,  even 
upon  sinners.  How  much  then  must  a  good  man  be 
worth  to  God  ?  See  what  God  did  for  you.  What  are 
you  doing  for  yourself? 

Paul  says,  "Know  ye  not  that  your  body  is  the 
temple  of  the  Holy  Ghost  .  .  .  and  ye  are  not 
your  own  ?  for  ye  are  bought  with  a  price :  therefore 
glorify  God  in  your  body,  and  in  your  spirit,  which 
are  God's." 

God  made  man  of  the  dust,  but  that  is  no  reason 
for  him  to  trail  himself  in  the  dust. 


200  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

Diamonds  are  carbon,  and  so  is  coal ;  but  we  do  not 
burn  diamonds.  The  gross  material  has  been  glori- 
fied. 

An  ounce  of  paint  serves  a  savage  to  disfigure  his 
face;  an  artist  will  paint  a  splendid  picture  with  it. 
He  glorifies  the  pigment  into  a  thing  of  art. 

And  herein  is  revealed  the  genius  of  God  that  he 
makes  a  sentient  and  lovely  creation  from  the  dust. 

We  have  disfigured  that  work,  and  it  is  our  busi- 
ness to  gain  once  more  our  lost  estate,  and  this  we 
will  do  with  the  aid  of  Christ,  "Who  shall  change 
our  vile  body,  that  it  may  be  fashioned  like  unto  his 
glorious  body." 

Man  is  priceless  in  God's  sight ;  apparently  worth- 
less in  his  own  sight.  How  much  work  do  we  put 
on  our  houses  and  gardens,  on  our  dresses  and  hats, 
on  our  farms  and  stores:  yet  these  all  shall  perish. 
The  one  eternal  thing  within  our  reach  to  bestow 
untiring  labor  upon  is  the  human  character.  No 
labor  too  long,  no  study  too  arduous,  no  sacrifice 
too  great  that  makes  it  greater  or  better. 

What  are  you  worth  to  God  ? 

You  are  worth  something  at  the  worst;  but  prize 
yourself  at  the  best. 


THE  LESSON  OF  THE  ROUND 
TABLE 

KING  ARTHUR  was  a  great  and  good  king  who 
tried  to  teach  the  knights  of  his  court 
chastity,  charity,  humility,  and  all  true  Chris- 
tian virtues. 

Like  all  such  men,  he  met  with  disappointments  in 
his  efforts  to  adjust  perverse  human  nature  to  his 
idealism. 

The  story  goes  that  on  a  certain  time  he  made  a 
feast  for  his  knights.  He  was  the  last  to  arrive,  and 
while  they  waited  for  him  to  come  they  fell  into  a 
dispute  as  to  who  should  have  preeminence  and  sit 
near  the  head  of  the  table,  and  who  should  be  humble 
and  sit  at  the  foot. 

The  dispute  grew  into  a  tumult  and  a  struggle, 
noisy  and  brutal.  They  fought  for  place  like  hogs  at 
a  trough. 

So  keen  was  the  interest  in  the  struggle  that  the 
king  entered  unobserved  and  stood  in  shocked  silence, 
contemplating  the  shameful  scene,  a  scene  which  in 
its  very  nature  repudiated  his  every  past  teaching. 
When  at  last  his  presence  was  noticed,  awed  silence 
fell  upon  the  group. 

King  Arthur  then  and  there  resolved  that  the 
scene  should  never  be  repeated.  So  he  caused  a  great 

201 


202  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

round  table  to  be  constructed — no  head,  no  foot — at 
which  his  knights  might  sit  in  absolute  equality. 

This  was  a  mechanical  contrivance  intended  to  se- 
cure equality.  Like  all  such  mechanical  contrivances, 
and  later  legislative  devises,  though  splendid  in  pur- 
pose and  original  in  conception,  it  was  doomed  to 
fail  when  put  to  the  rigid  test. 

In  a  group  of  men  whose  hearts  do  not  desire 
equality,  equality  can  never  be  forced — not  if  any 
material  or  mental  development  at  all  is  permitted. 
The  love  of  preeminence  will  find  some  way  of  ex- 
pression. 

Long  before  the  days  of  King  Arthur,  Jesus  him- 
self had  an  experience  not  unlike  that  which  led  to 
the  founding  of  the  celebrated  round  table.  His 
"knights"  of  the  gospel,  the  twelve  apostles,  fell  into 
a  quarrel  as  to  who  was  greatest  in  the  kingdom. 
Jesus  asked  them  what  they  had  talked  about  by  the 
way,  and  they  fell  silent,  for  they  well  knew  that 
their  struggle  for  supremacy  was  foreign  to  his 
spirit  and  teachings. 

He  then  proceeded  to  instruct  them,  sweeping 
away  all  material,  worldly,  commonly  accepted 
standards  of  rank  and  position,  and  making  service 
the  standard  of  merit.  His  servants  (or  rather 
friends)  must  be  equal,  and  content  with  equality. 
Any  preferment  must  come  from  God  and  be  received 
as  the  result  of  service — the  one  who  is  servant  of 
all  being  considered  greatest  of  all.  Such  preferment 
does  not  carry  with  it  luxury  and  ease,  as  in  the 


The  Lesson  of  the  Round  Table  203 

world,  but  in  most  cases  only  greater  responsibility 
and  opportunity  to  work,  so  that  they  remain  in  the 
last  analysis  equal  so  far  as  position  is  concerned, 
each  receiving  all  that  he  is  fitted  and  willing  to  use 
and  enjoy  in  the  way  of  opportunity. 

Jesus  did  not  attempt  to  produce  some  mechanical 
device,  nor  yet  any  theoretical  scheme  that  would 
bring  equality,  fraternity,  and  justice  automatically, 
with  or  without  the  free  consent  of  the  brains  and 
hearts  of  his  subjects. 

He  chose  a  less  alluring,  a  long  and  tedious,  but  the 
.only  practical,  method — that  of  individual  education 
and  regeneration. 

God  is  no  respecter  of  persons.  He  has  no  regard 
for  the  artificial  distinctions  of  wealth  and  birth 
that  seem  so  important  to  men,  and  so  often  make 
base  men  and  women  seem  honorable.  Of  him 
Peter  says:  'The  Father,  who  without  respect  of 
persons  judgeth  according  to  every  man's  work." 

God  does  not  recognize  these  distinctions,  and  he 
demands  that  his  Saints  shall  disregard  them,  so  far 
as  is  possible;  by  and  by  they  will  cease,  though 
now  they  seem  so  important. 

We  are  not  to  seek  the  best  seat  at  the  table,  or 
the  position  of  honor  in  the  synagogue.  If  these 
places  come  to  us,  let  them  come  at  God's  direction. 
It  is  better  to  take  a  lowly  seat  and  be  called  to  a 
higher,  than  to  establish  ourselves  in  an  exalted 
position  and  be  called  down. 

We  should  not  glory  in  titles,  or  in  dress,  or  in 


204 A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

wealth.  We  are  to  treat  all  with  true  Christian 
courtesy  and  not  pander  to  those  who  are  wealthy 
or  well  dressed.  James  says:  "If  there  come  into 
your  assembly  a  man  with  a  gold  ring,  in  goodly  ap- 
parel, and  there  come  in  also  a  poor  man  in  vile  rai- 
ment; and  ye  have  respect  to  him  that  weareth  the 
gay  clothing/  and  say  unto  him,  Sit  thou  here  in  a 
good  place ;  and  say  to  the  poor,  Stand  thou  there,  or 
sit  here  under  my  footstool :  are  ye  not  then  partial 
in  yourselves,  and  are  become  judges  of  evil 
thoughts?" 

James  was  your  true  church  democrat,  and  it 
irked  him  to  see  worldly  class  distinctions  creeping 
into  the  church.  He  knew  that  when  such  a  spirit 
entered  in,  religion  would  depart  and  church  politics 
take  its  place,  with  all  the  shameful  wire  pulling  anci 
scheming  that  disgrace  certain  church  circles  where 
clique  vies  with  clique  in  the  struggle  to  outshine  and 
outdress  all  others,  church  machinery  being  manipu- 
lated by  the  men  with  the  longest  purses,  pew  and 
pulpit  alike  controlled  by  money  and  not  by  brains 
and  piety. 

There  is  a  lesson  for  us  in  the  incident  of  the  round 
table.  The  whole  church  should  be  and  will  be  in  one 
sense  a  great  round  table  at  which  men  may  sit  as 
brothers — banished  every  false  and  artificial  class 
division. 


AT  THE  PLOW 

'Wo  man  having  put  his  hand  to  the  plow,  and  looking 
backward,  is  fit  for  the  kingdom  of  God." — Jesus. 

THE    Master,   desiring   to    admonish    quitters, 
made  use  of  a  very  striking  illustration.    Al- 
most anyone  who  has  followed  a  plow,   or 
watched  others  plow,  can  understand  its  significance. 
The  farmer,  as  he  prepares  to  strike  his  initial 
furrow,    erects   or   selects   some   landmark   at   the 
further  side  of  the  field,  usually  a  pole  or  staff  bear- 
ing some  sort  of  a  flag  or  ensign.    He  keeps  his  eyes 
steadily  upon  this  landmark  and  drives  directly  to- 
ward it,  and  thus  he  secures  a  straight  furrow. 

CROOKED  FURROWS 

But  if  he  begins  to  look  back  over  his  shoulder 
every  few  seconds,  and  perhaps  repent  that  he  ever 
started,  his  furrow  will  be  crooked.  And  if  the  first 
furrow  is  crooked,  all  succeeding  ones  will  be 
crooked.  These  crooked  furrows  sometimes  may  be 
seen  after  the  grain  is  sown  and  has  grown  up. 
Sometimes  they  can  be  discerned  even  after  the  har- 
vest. The  only  way  to  obliterate  them  is  to  do  the 
work  all  over  and  do  it  right. 

Thus  with  the  crooked  furrows  that  we  make  in 
life.  Unless  they  are  corrected,  and  our  "first  works" 
are  done  over  again,  they  will  be  seen  all  our  lives 
and  may  even  appear  after  the  harvest,  on  the  other 

205 


206  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

side  of  the  resurrection,  as  a  monument  to  the  folly 
of  those  who  have  attempted  to  follow  Jesus  while 
looking  back  at  the  world. 

In  passing,  we  might  note  that  in  order  to  strike 
a  true  furrow  the  farmer  must  select  a  stable  and 
reliable  landmark.  We  have  heard  of  one  who  tried 
to  strike  his  furrow  by  an  old  white  horse  that  was 
feeding  on  the  further  side  of  the  field.  But  the 
horse  did  not  stand  still.  He  kept  moving,  and  the 
result  may  be  imagined.  The  world  is  full  of  crooked 
furrows  made  by  those  who  are  following  changeable 
and  uncertain  guides — following  the  world  with  its 
fickle  and  passing  fashions  that  change  with  every 
changing  moon,  or  following  human  guides  with 
their  whims  and  notions.  We  have  but  to  scan  the 
history  of  the  church  during  the  "dark  and  cloudy 
day"  to  see  the  results  of  following  the  erratic 
wanderings  of  irresponsible  or  corrupt  leaders.  But 
our  God  has  set  up  an  ensign,  fixed,  and  unchange- 
able, by  which  we  can  shape  our  course. 

KEEP  OUT!     DO  NOT  TRESPASS! 

What  did  Jesus  mean  by  the  term  "looking  back"! 
Evidently  we  are  not  forbidden  to  look  back  over  our 
past  experiences,  for  sometimes  that  can  be  done 
with  profit.  The  poet  has  said : 

'•'The  joys  we  share  to-day,  when  they  have  flown 

Into  the  past  upon  their  shining  wings, 
Are  not  from  out  our  power  wholly  gone, 

But  shall  refresh  us  like  deep  hidden  springs." 

— D.  H.  Smith. 


At  the  Plow  207 

But  there  are  those  who  make  the  mistake  of  try- 
ing to  live  in  the  past  to  the  exclusion  of  activity 
and  blessing  in  the  present.  It  is  impossible  for  us 
to  reconstruct  the  past.  The  writer  looks  back  to  his 
boyhood  days  and  sometimes  wishes  that  he  might 
live  one  of  them  over  again.  But  it  cannot  be.  We 
may  sing, 

"Backward,  turn  backward,  O  Time,  in  thy  flight, 
Make  me  a  boy  again,  just  for  to-night," 

until  we  are  gray-haired,  but  time  will  not  turn  back- 
ward a  single  moment.  Even  if  we  could  become 
young  again,  past  scenes  are  forever  closed.  The 
writer  lived  as  a  boy  out  on  the  free  prairies.  He 
could  take  his  pony  and  ride  all  day  over  the  virgin 
sod,  out  of  sight  of  human  habitation.  But  now  the 
prairies  are  all  broken  up.  Men  have  fenced  them 
off  into  fields,  and  if  he  goes  back  to  those  old  haunts 
he  sees  everywhere  signs,  "Keep  out!  No  trespas- 
sing allowed." 

As  a  boy,  the  good  Lord  unrolled  before  him  the 
beautiful,  flower-bedecked  plains,  and  said,  "Come 
in!"  But  now  men  have  partitioned  that  fair  do- 
main, and  fenced  it,  and  put  up  their  notices,  "Keep 
out!" 

Before  everyone  born  into  the  world  God  opens  the 
bright  avenues  of  youth,  and  says,  "Come  in!"  But 
when  we  reach  manhood's  estate  and  try  to  wander 
back  again,  we  come  to  an  impassable  barrier,  where 
it  is  written,  "Keep  out." 


208  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

It  is  an  impressive  thought  that  we  cannot  actually 
reconstruct  and  live  over  a  single  day  of  the  past. 
We  cannot  reenact  a  single  event,  just  as  it  occurred. 
The  past  is  forever  closed,  except  to  the  spiritlike 
excursions  of  memory.  We  must  live  to-day,  and  use 
to-day.  We  are  journeying  towards  the  future,  not 
towards  the  past. 

THE  HAPPY   SAINTS   ARE  1*HE  BUSY  SAINTS 

So  we  feel  that  those  Saints  are  in  error  who  la- 
ment the  present  and  talk  all  the  time  about  the 
good  times  they  used  to  have  fifty  years  ago,  or 
twenty  years  ago,  or  perhaps  only  five  years  ago. 
They  say  they  do  not  have  as  good  times  as  they  used 
to  have.  They  do  not  have  such  spiritual  prayer 
meetings.  They  do  not  have  such  good  sermons,  nor 
such  wonderful  blessings.  What  is  the  trouble? 
Others  are  having  a  good  time  now!  Others  are 
having  spiritual  meetings!  Others  are  enjoying  the 
preaching  services!  God  is  blessing  others  with 
healing  and  many  marvelous  manifestations !  What 
is  the  trouble? 

Those  people  who  are  having  a  good  time  in  the 
church  now  are  the  ones  who  are  busy  now.  Those 
people  who  are  not  having  a  good  time  are,  as  a  rule, 
not  at  work.  They  used  to  be  active.  And  in  those 
days  they  had  their  good  times.  What  is  the  moral  ? 
Get  busy !  If  we  would  be  happy  we  must  be  active. 
If  we  will  not  be  active  we  must  pay  the  penalty  and 
be  miserable.  It  is  a  clear  proposition.  Why  hesi- 
tate about  the  choice?  Get  to  work  and  press  for- 


At  the  Plow  209 

ward.    Live  now.    Do  not  live  in  the  past.    God  is 
willing  to  bless  'now.    Meet  him  half  way. 

PAUL'S  POLICY 

So  Paul  resolved  that  he  would  not  sigh  and  la- 
ment. He  would  not  try  to  live  in  the  past.  He 
would  not  look  back.  He  tells  us:  "This  one  thing 
I  do,  forgetting  those  things  which  are  behind,  and 
reaching  forth  unto  those  things  which  are  before, 
I  press  toward  the  mark  for  the  prize  of  the  high 
calling  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus." — Philippians  4 : 13, 
14. 

How  much  better  this  is  than  the  policy  that  is 
sometimes  pursued.  When  Moses  came  down  out  of 
Midian,  he  found  the  Israelites  slaves.  They  were 
scourged  to  their  heavy  toil  all  day  long,  and  so 
poorly  fed  that  they  had  not  vitality  enough  to  re- 
sist. He  led  them  out  of  bondage  and  struck  a 
course  towards  the  promised  land.  But  they  were 
scarcely  out  of  sight  of  Egypt  before  they  began  to 
lament  and  look  back.  They  reproached  Moses  for 
having  brought  them  out  into  the  desert  to  die,  and 
said:  "We  remember  the  fish,  which  we  did  eat  in 
Egypt  freely;  the  cucumbers,  and  melons,  and  the 
leeks,  and  the  onions,  and  the  garlic." 

At  the  very  time  when  they  should  have  looked 
forward,  they  were  looking  backward.  Do  we  as  Lat- 
ter Day  Saints  ever  make  that  mistake?  God  has 
set  us  free  under  the  gospel  law,  under  the  rule,  "Ye 
shall  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  make  you 


210  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

free."     Do  we  press  forward  in  the  redemption  of 
Zion?  or  do  we  pause  and  lament? 

This  was  what  Jesus  had  in  mind.  He  was  speak- 
ing* about  those  who  start  out  to  serve  him,  put  their 
hand  to  the  plow,  as  he  expressed  it,  and  soon  repent 
of  their  choice,  or  become  discouraged,  and  begin  to 
look  back.  Such,  he  says,  are  not  worthy  of  the  king- 
dom of  God.  Let  us  not  make  this  mistake.  Let  us 
take  fresh  courage  and  press  on,  our  eyes  upon  the 
standard,  and  then  our  furrows  will  be  straight  and 
our  work  acceptable. 


FELLOWSHIP 

(A  sermon  delivered  at  the  Stone  Church,  Independence, 
Missouri,  March  9,  1919.) 


THE  TWO  SPARROWS 

rT^HE  subject  I  wish  to  talk  about  this  morning 
is  that  of  fellowship.  It  was  brought  to  my 
attention  casually  some  Sundays  ago.  One 
Sunday  morning  when  I  was  sitting  under  some  trees 
by  a  fountain  in  a  little  public  park,  I  noticed  two 
sparrows  on  the  ground,  and  the  words  of  the  Master 
came  to  my  mind,  "Are  not  two  sparrows  sold  for  a 
farthing,  and  yet  not  one  of  them  shall  fall  to  the 
ground  without  your  heavenly  Father's  notice."  Im- 
mediately the  thought  came  to  me  that  these  little 
creatures  that  I  have  noticed  so  casually  were  recip- 
ients of  the  notice  and  care  of  the  great  God  on 
high.  If  one  of  them  falls  to  the  ground  injured  or 
ill,  the  same  God-given  forces  of  nature  are  set  at 
work  to  heal  it  that  are  set  at  work  for  you  or  me,  if 
we  fall  to  the  ground  injured  or  ill. 

I  noticed  that  these  little  sparrows,  when  they 
drank  at  the  fountain,  lifted  their  heads  as  though 
they  might  be  giving  thanks  to  the  same  God  to 
whom  I  look  for  his  bounteous  care  and  blessings.  I 
realized  then  that  there  was  between  us  a  bond  of 
fellowship.  We  had  the  same  Creator;  we  shared 
the  fellowship  of  joy  and  of  sorrow,  the  fellowship 
of  peace  or  of  pain. 

211 


212  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

THE  HUMBLER  FELLOWSHIP 

There  is,  in  fact,  a  degree  of  fellowship  between 
man  and  the  lower  animals.  In  one  of  his  stories 
Kipling  tells  how  the  animals  first  came  and  attached 
themselves  to  man.  The  dog  came  first  that  he  might 
warm  himself  at  the  fire,  and  so  became  "the  first 
friend."  The  horse  came  next,  bowed  his  head  to 
the  halter,  and  became  "the  first  servant."  I  think 
that  the  reason  the  Uncle  Remus  stories  and  the 
bedtime  stories  by  Thornton  Burgess  appeal  to  the 
children,  and  grown-ups  as  well,  is  because  they 
touch  something  that  is  fundamental,  the  hereditary 
racial  tie  that  has  bound  humanity  to  the  lower  ani- 
mals through  ages  of  mutual  experiences. 

The  animals  and  birds  share  with  us  practically 
all  fundamental  physical  problems,  which  reduced  to 
the  simplest  are  to  secure  shelter,  food,  and  to  per- 
petuate the  species.  They  must  have  food;  so  must 
we,  though  by  multiplying  wants  we  complicate  our 
problem.  They  must  have  shelter ;  so  must  we,  only 
we  are  more  fastidious.  They  love  and  mate  with- 
out ceremony  or  benefit  of  clergy ;  we  make  marriage 
a  sacrament  (some  do),  but  the  end  with  both  is  to 
perpetuate  the  species.  We  have  an  added  problem, 
that  of  dress — but  many  are  reducing  that  problem 
to  a  minimum.  Recently  I  read  an  anecdote:  At  a 
fashionable  dinner  party  a  certain  man  looked  across 
the  array  of  bare  backs  and  bosoms  and  remarked  to 
a  friend,  "Does  not  the  Bible  say  something  to  the 
effect  that  when  Adam  and  Eve  had  eaten  the  apple 


Fellowship  213 

they  became  aware  that  they  were  naked?"  The 
friend  replied,  "I  believe  it  does."  "Well,  then,  isn't 
it  about  time  to  pass  the  apples  again  ?" 

The  animals  even  share  our  mental  problems.  To 
be  sure,  we  flatter  ourselves  that  only  man  thinks. 
But  sometimes  I  think  that  we  think  we  are  thinking 
when  we  only  think  we  are  thinking  and  that  the 
animals  think  when  we  don't  think  they  think. 

But  in  this  fellowship  the  animals  can  go  only  so 
far.  They  may  share  with  us  our  physical  struggles ; 
they  may  even  share  our  mental  struggles,  to  an 
extent,  but  they  cannot  share  with  us  our  moral 
struggles.  They  do  not  realize  any  difference  be- 
tween right  and  wrong.  They  are  neither  moral  nor 
immoral,  but  unmoral.  But  we  are,  as  Satan  said 
we  should  be,  to  a  certain  extent,  at  least,  become  as 
gods,  knowing  good  and  evil.  Yet  we  remain  lament- 
ably human,  in  that  we  must  every  day  make  the 
struggle  of  choice  between  the  two. 

THE    UPWARD    STRUGGLE 

Then  if  we  would  find  fellowship  in  our  moral 
struggles,  we  must  ascend  to  a  higher  plane  and  find 
it  in  the  fellowship  of  man  and  in  the  fellowship  of 
God.  It  seems  to  me  that  just  as  my  reflections  ap- 
peared to  be  led  casually  from  the  observation  of 
those  two  sparrows  that  Jesus  said  received  the  no- 
tice and  recognition  of  God,  up  to  the  fellowship  of 
man,  so  likewise  the  human  race,  in  its  experiences, 
has  pursued  a  course  that  superficially  might  seem 
casual,  from  the  brutal  plane,  where  the  physical  was 


214  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

nearly  all  that  was  recognized,  up  to  a  plane  where 
there  was  some  sort  of  social  unity  and  intercourse 
of  a  spiritual  nature. 

But  that  struggle,  though  it  seems  casual,  has  been 
one  of  tremendous  sacrifice ;  and  then  the  course  up- 
ward from  our  social  intercourse,  to  the  point  where 
we  can  fellowship  with  God,  involves  a  struggle 
equally  great,  including  the  death  and  suffering  of 
our  Lord  and  Savior  Jesus  Christ — for  we  obtain 
fellowship  with  God  by  way  of  Jesus  Christ,  his  Son. 

The  fellowship  of  man  is  a  subject  of  vital  impor- 
tance, and  has  more,  perhaps,  than  a  religious  basis, 
or  a  theoretical  or  theological  foundation.  Doctor 
Richard  Cabot  published  a  book  several  years  ago 
called,  What  Men  Live  By,  and  in  successive  chapters 
in  that  book  he  deals  with  work,  and  play,  and  love, 
and  worship.  These  four  are  fundamental,  and  we 
cannot  take  away  any  one  of  them  and  have  a  well- 
rounded  life;  but  of  course  the  last  two  mentioned, 
love  and  worship,  come  more  directly  under  the  sub- 
ject that  I  have  selected. 

John  is  in  harmony  with  Cabot  where  he  says, 
"We  know  that  we  have  passed  from  death  unto  life 
because  we  love  the  brethren." 

In  one  of  his  poems,  Markham  says : 

"The  crest  and  crowning  of  all  good, 
Life's  final  star  is  brotherhood." 

And  so  this  struggle,  this  upward  leading,  has  its 
final  culmination  in  brotherhood;  brotherhood  with 
man ;  fellowship  with  Christ. 


Fellowship  215 

LIFE  MADE  TOLERABLE 

Just  our  common  friendship  is  about  all  that 
makes  life  tolerable — the  life  and  fellowship  that  ex- 
ists between  brothers,  father  and  son,  husband  and 
wife.  The  household  in  which  this  fellowship  has 
developed  between  husband  and  wife  and  among 
children  and  parents  certainly  is  fortunate.  In  the 
church,  however,  this  fellowship  is  sanctified  and 
brought  to  a  higher  and  holier  plane ;  so  we  can  truly 
sing,  with  the  Spirit, 

"Blest  be  the  tie  that  binds 

Our  hearts  in  Christian  love. 
The  fellowship  of  kindred  minds 
Is  like  to  that  above." 

Fellowship  is  all  that  makes  life  worth  while.  I 
remember  one  of  the  stories  I  read  years  ago  in 
Gulliver's  Travels,  by  Jonathan  Swift,  about  the 
"Strulbrugs."  I  don't  know  whether  you  recall  it, 
but  this  traveler  in  the  realm  of  imagination  visited 
a  strange  nation,  and  while  there  he  was  told  that 
occasionally  there  was  an  individual  born  who  was 
immortal — he  never  would  die.  Perhaps  one  or  two 
or  three  such  individuals  were  bom  in  the  course 
of  a  generation,  possessed  of  eternal  life,  called 
Strulbrugs. 

He  thought  to  himself,  how  exceedingly  fortunate 
these  individuals  must  be,  to  live  forever  in  this 
beautiful  world  with  all  its  attractions  and  its  joys; 
but  when  he  came  in  contact  with  them  his  ideal 


216  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

was  speedily  shattered.  He  found  that  these  men 
passed  through  the  various  changes  and  periods  of 
life  incident  to  man  until  they  became  aged,  perhaps 
ninety  years  old,  with  all  the  infirmities  of  age 
fastened  upon  them,  and  then  they  came  to  a  station- 
ary period  and  forever  remained  in  that  condition, 
their  diseases  neither  increasing  nor  diminishing. 
But  the  thing  that  made  their  condition  most  in- 
tolerable was  that  with  the  passing  of  the  years  their 
parents  died,  their  children  passed  away,  all  their 
friends  whose  friendship  they  had  cultivated  in  their 
younger  years,  one  by  one  passed  from  the  scene  of 
action.  Being  in  this  state  they  were  incapable  of 
forming  other  friendships,  so  at  last  they  were  left 
entirely  alone,  loving  no  one,  loved  by  no  one.  This 
made  their  condition  so  almost  intolerable  that  they 
fain  would  have  died — but  they  were  immortal. 

A  man  who  loves  no  one  and  is  loved  by  no  one 
does  not  need  to  die  to  go  to  hell.  He  is  there  now. 
Immortality  would  be  the  worst  possible  punishment 
that  could  be  inflicted  upon  such  a  man. 

UNRAVEL  YOUR  OWN  HEART 

I  remember  talking  with  a  man  some,  years  ago 
who  had  a  very  wide  circle  of  acquaintances,  and  I 
noticed  that  almost  every  man  that  was  mentioned 
in  the  course  of  conversation  caused  this  brother  to 
say,  *  There's  another  man  that  thinks  a  lot  of  me." 
I  didn't  hear  him  say  at  any  time,  There's  a  man  I 
think  a  lot  of.  It  seemed  to  me  he  had  hold  of  the 
wrong  string.  Sometimes  we  make  a  mistake  in  that 


Fellowship  217 

way.  We  cannot  all  the  time  pull  love  towards  us  as 
though  we  were  trying  to  unravel  the  hearts  of  the 
people  for  our  benefit.  We  must  unravel  our  own 
hearts.  Give  our  own  friendship,  and  it  comes  back 
again  a  hundredfold,  as  the  Master  said. 

We  do  not  need  to  limit  our  friendship  and  fellow- 
ship, either,  to  those  who  are  effusive  in  their  demon- 
strations toward  us.  Markham  has  another  verse: 

"He  drew  a  circle  that  shut  me  out — 
But  love  and  I  had  the  wit  to  win, 
We  drew  a  circle  that  took  him  in." 

The  greatest  fellowship  is  found  in  our  fellowship 
with  Jesus.  The  sweetest  words  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment— at  least  I  think  they  are  the  sweetest  when 
I  read  them — are  those  that  he  uttered  when  he  said, 
"Henceforth  I  will  call  you  no  more  servants;  I  will 
call  you  friends."  There  was  to  be  no  longer  Master 
and  servant,  but  Jesus  and  his  followers  were  to  be 
friends. 

EXCEPT  YE  ARE  ONE 

Just  as  he  had  been  united  with  God  and  was  will- 
ing to  become  one  with  us,  so  he  said  to  us,  "Except 
ye  are  one  ye  are  not  mine."  These  are  significant 
words,  and  they  might  be  discouraging  words  to  me 
if  it  were  not  for  the  philosophy  that  I  have  pro- 
pounded in  my  own  mind,  that  though  we  may  not  be 
one  in  opinion — which  seems  almost  hopeless  under 
existing  circumstances,  with  our  various  past  ex- 
periences and  differences  of  training — though  we 


218  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

may  not  be  one  in  opinion,  it  is  yet  possible  for  us 
to  be  one  in  spirit,  one  in  heart,  one  in  consecrated 
desire  to  know  the  will  of  God,  and  knowing  it,  to 
do  it.  If  we  can  only  attain  to  that  position,  the 
time  eventually  will  come  when  we  will  be  one  in 
understanding.  The  divine  condition  cannot  be  ob- 
tained instantaneously,  but  by  a  process  of  growth. 

In  three  of  his  miracles  Jesus  compares  the  king- 
dom of  heaven  to  things  that  live  and  grow:  The 
parable  of  the  corn,  first  the  blade  and  then  the  ear, 
then  the  full  corn  in  the  ear.  The  parable  of  the 
mustard  seed  that  grows  up  and  becomes  a  great 
plant.  The  parable  of  the  yeast,  that  grows  and 
multiplies  until  it  leavens  the  whole  lump. 

THE  KINGDOM  NOT  MANUFACTURED 

The  kingdom  of  heaven  cannot  be  manufactured. 
It  is  a  process  of  growth,  and  it  involves  the  growth 
and  the  action  and  interaction  and  reaction  upon 
each  other  of  a  multitude  of  souls.  It  would  seem  to 
be  a  fine  thing  if  we  could  take  pencil  and  paper  and 
sit  down  and  draw  the  plot  of  Zion  and  set  the 
masons  at  work  building  the  houses ;  and  then  draft 
rigid  rules  of  conduct  and  life,  and  compel  the  peo- 
ple to  conform  to  them.  In  a  week's  time,  or  a 
month,  or  possibly  a  year,  we  could  have  Zion;  but 
we  cannot  do  that.  We  have  to  wait  for  the  growth 
of  ourselves  and  the  people.  It  is  incumbent  upon 
us  to  bear  with  the  people,  with  each  other,  as  God 
bears  with  us,  until  finally  the  kingdom  of  heaven 


Fellowship  219 

has  time  to  grow — and  the  Master  says  it  comes  not 
by  "observation,"  either. 

THE  INCOMING  TIDE 

I  have  sometimes  tried  to  illustrate  the  love  of 
God  and  its  influence  upon  the  heart  of  man  by  the 
incoming  of  the  tide.  Two  or  three  years  ago  my 
companion  and  I  were  living  upon  the  beach  in 
California  where  the  tide  came  up  at  night  and  al- 
most touched  our  doorstep.  I  noticed  there  would 
be  a  great  many  days  in  succession,  perhaps  for  a 
week,  when  the  waves  coming  in  would  deposit  along 
the  beach  all  sorts  of  rubbish  and  refuse  from  the 
ocean:  seaweed,  barnacles,  kelp,  and  mussel  shells 
—all  sorts  of  stuff  would  be  piled  up  along  the  beach. 

Then  there  would  come  a  night  when  a  tremen- 
dous tide  would  come  in  from  the  ocean  and  sweep 
that  beach  from  end  to  end,  and  in  the  morning  when 
we  looked  out  the  sand  would  be  as  clean  and  fresh 
as  on  the  morning  of  creation.  So,  when  the  pure 
love  of  God,  in  those  "times  of  refreshing"  that  the 
apostle  speaks  of,  comes  to  our  hearts,  as  in  our 
communion  services,  we  will  say,  it  sweeps  away  all 
evil  passions,  the  envy  and  hatred  and  malice  and 
temptations  that  have  accumulated,  and  leaves  us 
pure  and  clean  in  spirit  and  in  soul.  Then  we  can 
realize  what  the  Master  meant  when  he  said,  "The 
pure  in  heart  shall  see  God." 

LEARNING  ZION'S  ALPHABET 

Sometimes  we  are  discouraged,  we  feel  so  insig- 
nificant— I  presume  you  have  shared  with  me  in  this 


220  A  Cup  of  Cold    Water 

feeling,  all  of  you — when  you  realize  the  tremen- 
dous difficulties,  that  stand  in  our  pathway  in  our 
effort  to  redeem  Zion — the  problems  that  seem  be- 
yond human  power  to  solve.  I  think  many  of  them 
will  be  solved  in  a  simpler  way  than  we  imagine. 

I  may  perhaps  illustrate  it  in  this  way:  Two  or 
three  Sundays  ago  when  I  visited  Des  Moines  I  had 
a  little  conversation  with  my  first  teacher,  the  one 
who  taught  me  to  read,  taught  me  my  letters.  I  felt 
then  and  feel  now  that  I  am  greatly  in  her  debt, 
and  you  are,  too,  to  the  extent  that  I  may  be  able  to 
administer  to  any  of  your  spiritual  needs  this  morn- 
ing, for  the  fact  that  she  placed  in  my  hands  the  key 
to  all  English  literature  in  those  first  few  simple  yet 
tedious  lessons.  Yes,  and  the  key  to  other  literature, 
if  I  should  care  to  use  it. 

The  same  fundamental  principles  that  she  taught 
me  in  those  early  lessons  I  use  every  day.  By  their 
aid,  while  then  I  could  read  those  simple  lessons  in 
the  primer,  I  can  now  read  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount, 
the  Twenty-third  Psalm,  the  Gettysburg  Speech,  a 
treatise  on  science,  or  the  constitution  of  the  new 
League  of  Nations.  There  is  nothing  so  profound 
or  so  exalted  that  it  does  not  yield  its  treasure  to  me 
when  I  remember  and  use  those  first  few  funda- 
mental lessons  in  reading  and  use  the  simple  letters 
in  the  alphabet  to  spell  out  the  words. 

In  a  like  manner  I  believe  that  Jesus  Christ  in 
the  very  kindergarten  of  our  religious  experience, 
has  taught  us  many  things,  that  if  we  will  but  re- 


Fellowship  221 

member  and  use  will  help  us  solve  these  problems — 
and  we  may  not  need  so  many  wonderful  further 
revelations  as  we  sometimes  feel  that  we  do. 

Jesus  said,  "Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God 
with  all  thy  heart,  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy 
mind."  This  is  the  first  great  commandment.  And  the 
second  is  like  unto  it,  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor 
as  thyself.  On  these  two  great  commandments  hang 
all  the  law  and  the  prophets. 

These  are  primary  lessons  that  we  have  been 
taught  for  years,  but  I  believe  that  they  will  be  just 
as  vital  and  effectual  in  the  school  of  the  prophets 
as  they  are  to-day  in  a  quorum  of  deacons — just  as 
effective  in  Zion  as  in  the  most  obscure  branch.  So 
I  take  heart  of  hope,  realizing  that  perhaps  if  we  will 
but  apply  the  lessons  that  God  has  already  taught  us, 
all  the  treasures  of  Zion  and  of  heaven  may  yet  be 
within  our  reach. 

AN  IMPORTANT  ADMONITION 

Before  I  close  I  would  like  to  leave  with  you  a  little 
parting  exhortation  or  admonition.  I  do  not  know 
what  point  of  merit  the  sermon  may  have  carried  to 
you,  but  I  do  feel  that  the  admonition  and  exhorta- 
tion are  applicable  to  the  present  situation,  and  ought 
to  be  of  some  force  and  benefit  to  the  people. 

It  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  in  the  hastening 
time,  which  apparently  has  come  upon  the  world,  as 
well  as  upon  the  church,  (when  everything  that  can 
be  shaken  will  be  shaken,  and  is'  being  shaken,  and 
nations  are  being  destroyed  or  built  in  a  day)  that 


222  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

the  church  also  will  have  its  turmoils,  and  that  Satan 
more  strongly  will  endeavor  to  frustrate  our  work 
as  it  draws  to  its  culmination. 

President  Joseph  Smith  told  us  years  ago  that  we 
would  never  be  led  into  immoral  teaching,  as  some 
were  in  the  past.  That  Satan  would  make  his  attack 
within  the  church  and  attempt  to  disrupt  that  bond 
of  fellowship  that  I  have  been  talking  about,  by  the 
use  of  suspicion  and  slander,  and  all  that  tends  to 
divide  brother  from  brother. 

Now,  to  the  admonition.  In  the  closing  verse  of 
section  122,  the  Lord  says:  "Let  nothing  separate 
you  from  each  other  and  the  work  whereunto  you 
have  been  called."  Let  nothing  destroy  this  holy 
bond  of  fellowship.  'The  work  whereunto  you  have 
been  called."  Every  man  is  called.  The  Book  of 
Doctrine  and  Covenants  tells  that  all  are  called  ac- 
cording to  the  gifts  of  God  unto  them,  and  the  work 
is  intrusted  to  all. 

"THESE  ARE  MY  PEOPLE" 

In  the  communion  service  last  Sunday  in  the  lower 
auditorium  there  was  a  testimony  borne  that  I  wish 
all  might  have  heard.  It  was  borne  by  a  sister,  well 
known  to  you,  a  daughter  of  the  late  President  Jos- 
eph Smith.  It  seems  that  some  weeks  ago,  while  in 
a  period  of  mental  distress,  because  of  burdens  known 
to  herself  better  than  to  us,  feeling  that  perhaps  she 
too  might  fall,  in  some  way,  on  account  of  that  which 
she  was  called  upon  to  bear,  she  passed  a  sleepless 


Fellowship  223 

night  of  prayer  until  nearly  morning,  at  which  time 
she  fell  asleep  and  experienced  this  dream : 

She  thought  she  was  here  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
Stone  Church.  There  were  many  people  around  the 
church,  some  going  in  and  some  going  away.  And 
a  great  many  were  simply  wandering  around  in  an 
undecided  way.  On  many  countenances  there  was  a 
look  of  doubt  and  distress.  She  then  saw  she  had  in 
her  hand  a  little  traveling  bag,  indicating,  perhaps, 
that  she,  too,  was  going  away.  But  she  looked  to- 
wards the  church  and  saw  those  who  were  going  up 
the  steps  into  the  church,  and  she  handed  the  travel- 
ing bag  to  some  one  else,  saying,  "Here,  take  this! 
These  are  my  people !  My  place  is  with  them !"  And 
when  she  started  towards  the  church  the  heavens 
opened  and  there  was  a  flood  of  light  and  glory,  and 
she  saw  the  Father  and  Son. 

This  is  the  thought:  We  do  not  know  what  may 
be  before  the  church.  We  do  not  know !  You  do  not 
know !  As  you  sit  here  under  the  sound  of  my  voice, 
perhaps  feeling  secure,  firmly  grounded  in  your  faith 
and  convictions,  you  little  realize  what  trials,  what 
false  philosophy,  what  doubts  and  strife  may  be 
brought  to  overthrow  you.  We  ought  to  remember 
the  admonition,  "Let  nothing  separate  you  from  each 
other  and  the  work  whereunto  you  are  called,"  and 
with  this  good  sister  say,  "These  are  my  people !  My 
place  is  with  them." 


MOTHER'S   PLACE   IN   OUR  LIVES 

(A  sermon  on  Mother's  Day,  at  Central  Church,  Kansas  City, 

1921.) 

"Charity  suffer eth  long,  and  is  kind;  charity  envieth  not; 
charity  vaunteth  not  itself ;  is  not  puffed  up,  doth  not  behave 
itself  unseemly,  seeketh  not  her  oum,  is  not  easily  provoked, 
thinketh  no  evil;  rejoiceth  not  in  iniquity,  but  rejoiceth  in 
the  truth;  beareth  all  things,  believeth  all  things,  hopeth  all 
things,  endureth  all  things." — 1  Corinthians  13:4-7. 

YOU  may  wonder  why  I  have  selected  this  scrip- 
ture reading  for  this  day.  The  reason  is,  I  be- 
lieve that  we  could  substitute  the  words  moth- 
er's love  for  the  word  charity,  because  it  is  a  fact 
that  mother's  love  is  kind,  is  not  easily  provoked, 
thinketh  no  evil,  but  beareth  all  things,  believeth  all 
things,  endureth  all  things,  hopeth  all  things,  and 
never  fails. 

There  is  a  French  poem  which  recites  the  deeds  of 
a  Paris  "Apache,"  the  lowest  type  of  Parisian  crim- 
inal. This  young  man  loved  a  girl  of  his  own  class. 
In  his  infatuation  he  told  her  that  she  might  ask  him 
to  do  anything  to  prove  his  love  and  he  would  do  it. 
And  she  in  the  wanton  cruelty  of  her  nature  told  him 
to  bring  her  his  mother's  heart.  So  he  tore  the  beat- 
ing heart  from  his  mother's  breast  and  started  with 
it  to  his  inamorata.  But  on  the  way  he  stumbled 
and  fell  heavily.  Then  the  bleeding  heart  of  his 
mother  found  voice  and  cried  from  the  rough  cobble 

224 


Mother's  Place  in  Our  Lives  225 

stones  where  it  lay,  "Son,  did  you  hurt  yourself 
badly?" 

That  may  seem  to  be  an  overdrawn  picture,  yet 
thousands  of  broken-hearted  mothers  have  continued 
to  love  and  pray  for  the  sons  who  have  brought  them 
to  disgrace  and  death. 

MOST  NEARLY  LIKE  THE  LOVE  OF  GOD 

True  mother's  love  is  perhaps  most  nearly  like  the 
love  of  God  of  anything  we  can  comprehend :  it  is  so 
full  of  charity,  it  demands  so  little,  and  gives  itself 
so  freely,  especially  when  most  needed.  You  have 
all  seen  the  popular  cartoons,  "When  a  feller  needs  a 
friend."  Certainly  when  man  is  born  into  the  world 
he  needs  a  friend.  We  come  here  quite  helpless  and 
without  a  rag  to  our  backs  (we  may  have  plenty  of 
them  later) .  We  come  without  money  enough  to  pay 
for  one  square  meal,  and  could  not  eat  a  square  meal 
if  we  had  it.  But  mother's  arms  are  open.  She  says, 
"Come  and  warm  yourself  in  my  bosom,  eat  of  my 
flesh,  I  will  warm  you  and  feed  you  and  clothe  you." 
Mother's  love  is  the  coin  that  pays  our  way. 

Every  boy,  and  every  girl,  who  has  a  mother,  has 
a  friend  whose  friendship  is  not  based  on  beauty  or 
merit.  Here,  for  instance,  is  a  little  tow-headed 
urchin  with  a  pug  nose,  and  freckles  so  thick  that 
some  of  them  stand  on  edge ;  perhaps  dirty,  and  cer- 
tainly boisterous;  one  who  would  stand  no  show 
whatever  in  a  beauty  contest.  He  doesn't  appeal  to 
you  or  to  me,  but  if  he  were  a  beautiful,  golden- 
haired  cherub  from  the  gates  of  glory  his  mother 
8 


226  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

could  not  love  him  any  more  than  she  does ;  she  would 
not  love  him  any  more,  because  she  could  not.  A 
mother  gives  all  that  she  has  and  she  could  not  give 
any  more. 

She  asks  no  questions,  but  opens  her  arms  and 
takes  that  which  God  gives  her  in  the  hour  of  trav- 
ail, ilf  the  little  one  is  beautiful,  so  much  the  better. 
If  he  is  homely — no  difference,  she  does  not  know  it. 
If  he  is  crippled,  she  lavishes  the  more  love  upon 
him,  to  atone  for  the  misfortune.  The  mother  may 
live  under  the  cherry  blossoms  of  Japan  and  welcome 
a  little  slant-eyed  youngster ;  she  may  be  the  grand- 
daughter of  slaves  and  receive  a  little  black  picka- 
ninny ;  she  may  be  a  Sioux  woman  with  a  son  of  La- 
man  in  her  arms;  she  may  be  an  Anglo-Saxon  with 
a  baby  as  lovely  as  Greek  statuary ;  there  is  no  differ- 
ence in  the  welcome — mother's  love  is  universal. 

True,  the  father  may  have  his  own  private 
thoughts  about  the  appearance  of  the  newcomer- 
he  will  do  well  to  keep  them  to  himself.  The  little 
brother  makes  no  secret  of  the  fact  that  in  his  opin- 
ion the  baby  is  quite  unfinished.  But  the  mother  has 
no  misgivings.  She  has  made  an  investment.  She  has 
risked  her  life  in  the  venture.  We  are  not  too  criti- 
cal of  that  for  which  we  have  risked  all. 

A  certain  reticent  Scotchman  is  said  to  have  taken 
a  bride,  a  girl  not  noted  for  her  beauty.  His  mistress 
hearing  about  it  said  to  him,  "I  suppose,  Sandy,  your 
new  wife  is  very  lovely."  The  cautious  Scot  replied, 
"Weel,  she's  the  Lord's  handiwork;  but  I'll  na'  say 
She's  his  masterpiece !" 


Mother's  Place  in  Our  Lives  227 

Every  mother  is  sure  that  her  baby  is  not  only  the 
Lord's  handiwork,  but  also  his  masterpiece. 

Mother's  love  is  a  noble  thing,  even  when  it  is  man- 
ifested among  animals.  I  remember  one  occasion 
when  as  a  boy  I  was  crossing  the  prairie  with  my 
dog.  (No  real  boy  ever  got  anywhere  satisfactorily 
without  a  dog.  I  suppose  that  the  friendship  that 
exists  between  boys  and  dogs  is  because  boys  to-day 
are  just  about  where  men  were  when  they  first 
formed  the  friendship  of  dogs — the  boy  is  just  about 
where  man  was  when  the  dog  first  came  in  out  of  the 
forests  and  attached  himself  to  society.)  I  was  cross- 
ing the  field  with  my  friend  when  from  under  my  feet 
there  sprang  up  a  prairie  chicken  apparently  with  a 
broken  wing.  She  flopped  through  the  air  and  fell  to 
the  ground  about  ten  feet  away  from  me.  The  dog 
went  after  the  bird,  but  he  got  only  a  few  feathers, 
and  the  poor  wounded  mother  struggled  on  a  little 
farther.  The  process  was  repeated  until  we  had  gone 
two  or  three  hundred  feet.  Then,  suddenly,  this 
"wounded"  bird  sprang  into  the  air  and  flew  away 
absolutely  unhurt,  and  we  realized,  of  course,  that  we 
had  been  fooled.  This  mother,  twenty  times  in  as 
many  minutes  risked  her  life  to  save  her  brood.  I 
have  seen  this  done  many  times  since  that  time,  by 
plovers  and  other  wild  fowl.  It  is  an  old  trick  of  the 
mother  prairie  chicken,  to  lead  an  enemy  away  from 
her  nest. 

On  another  occasion  I  was  crossing  the  prairie  in 
the  wake  of  a  fire.  It  was  always  a  great  experience 


228  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

to  follow  after  a  prairie  fire  and  see  what  had  been 
uncovered — and  this  time  I  happened  to  come  upon  a 
little  brown  prairie  bird  that  had  remained  on  her 
nest  and  perished  in  the  flames  rather  than  leave  the 
two  little  fledglings  that  were  under  her.  She  had 
two  strong  wings  and  she  could  have  flown  away  at 
any  time  into  the  open  sky  far  beyond  the  smoke  and 
heat,  but  she  chose  to  stay,  and  perished  with  her 
children.  They  say  that  self-preservation  is  the  first 
law  of  nature,  but  there  was  a  stronger  law,  a  pri- 
mary law,  the  law  of  love,  and  she  perished  in  an  ef- 
fort to  save  her  young.  She  was  just  one  of  the 
humblest  of  the  animal  creation,  but  Jesus  said, 
"Greater  love  hath  no  man  than  this :  that  he  should 
give  his  life  for  another." 

HUMAN   MOTHER'S  LOVE 

Of  course,  when  we  come  to  consider  the  love  of 
the  human  mother,  it  is  much  more  Godlike  because 
it  is  so  much  more  intelligent  and  associated  with  so 
much  more  imagination  and  feeling.  In  the  animal 
kingdom  even  the  greatest  mother  love  seems  to  end 
with  the  period  of  dependency.  The  little  wren  that 
cherishes  her  young  so  carefully  now,  in  two  or 
three  months  will  cast  them  off  and  will  not  know 
them  from  other  wrens.  That  is  true  to  a  greater  or 
less  extent  of  all  animals,  but  it  certainly  is  not  so 
with  the  human  mother.  Neither  time  nor  distance 
lessens  her  affection.  I  knew  an  old  man,  perhaps 
seventy  years  old,  whose  mother,  ninety  years  of 
age,  watched  over  him  just  as  jealously  as  she  did 


Mother's  Place  in  Our  Lives  229 

when  he  was  a  little  boy.  If  he  were  gone  from  her 
sight  on  some  errand  an  undue  length  of  time  she 
worried  about  him  and  chided  him  on  his  return. 

The  passage  of  time  had  made  no  difference.  The 
mother  whose  baby  died  five,  ten,  twenty,  or  fifty 
years  ago  still  cherishes  the  little  lock  of  hair  and  the 
little  blue  shoes  that  are  silent  helps  to  a  memory 
that  needs  no  help. 

Neither  does  distance  seem  to  make  any  change, 
for  the  mothers  whose  boys  not  long  ago  were  in  far- 
off  France  loved  them  just  as  dearly  as  when  they 
were  at  home.  To  that  extent,  love  becomes  Godlike, 
because  it  does  not  recognize  change,  or  time,  or 
space. 

THE    MOST    INTERESTING    EXPERIMENT 

I  believe  that  to  a  mother  is  intrusted  the  most  in- 
teresting experiment  a  human  being  can  engage  in. 
Some  people  are  deeply  interested  in  the  culture  of 
flowers;  some  are  interested  in  the  culture  of  fruit; 
and  still  others  in  the  culture  of  animals;  but  the 
mother  is  engaged  in  the  culture  of  a  human  being, 
and  to  her  is  intrusted  the  welfare  of  a  human  soul. 
Certainly  no  one  can  say  to  her  that  she  can  dream 
this  dream  and  may  not  dream  that  one ;  and  no  one 
can  put  a  barrier  around  her  dreams,  because  no  one 
can  say  what  will  come  from  the  experiment  she  is 
carrying  on.  She  may  be  cradling  a  Moses,  or  a  Solo- 
mon, or  a  David,  or  a  Saint  Paul,  or  a  Gladstone,  or 
an  Abraham  Lincoln.  No  one  knows.  There  is  no 


230  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

limit  to  the  dreams  she  can  dream  or  the  ambitions 
she  may  entertain. 

But  on  the  other  hand,  there  is  no  limit  to  the 
fears  that  may  come  into  her  soul,  because  it  is  true 
that  while  she  may  be  nursing  a  Saint  Paul,  she  may 
be  nursing  a  Judas  Iscariot!  Some  mother  did! 
While  she  may  be  rearing  a  Mary  or  Martha,  she  may 
be  rearing  a  Jezebel !  Some  mother  did !  And  even 
if  moral  catastrophe  is  avoided,  there  is  always  the 
danger  of  other  catastrophes  that  bring  anxiety  to 
the  mother's  heart. 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  pictures  of  Jesus  as  a 
boy  represents  him,  standing  facing  the  morning  sun, 
his  arm,s  outstretched  on  either  side.  His  mother  is 
shocked  to  see  his  shadow  fall  in  a  perfect  cross  at 
her  feet. 

Do  you  remember  the  statement  that  was  made  to 
Mary,  the  mother  of  Jesus,  "And  because  of  him  a 
sword  also  shall  pierce  through  thine  own  soul." 
And  there  is  a  second  statement  found  in  the  nine- 
teenth chapter  of  John  and  the  twenty-fifth  verse. 
Just  a  few  words :  "There  stood  by  the  cross  of  Jesus, 
his  mother."  Yes,  you  may  be  assured  his  mother 
followed  him  to  the  cross. 

THE  MOTHER  OF  MOSES 

I  want  to  tell  you  this  morning  the  story  of  three 
mothers.  The  first  of  these  was  that  Hebrew  girl,  a 
daughter  of  Levi,  who  married  and  lived  on  the  banks 
of  the  Nile.  In  due  time  she  gave  birth  to  a  boy,  and 
nursed  and  cared  for  him  as  long  as  she  dared,  being 


Mother's  Place  in  Our  Lives  231 

afraid  of  the  edict  that  had  gone  forth  that  all  male 
children  of  the  Hebrews  should  die.  Then  she  formed 
an  ark  of  bulrushes,  coated  it  over  with  slime,  put  the 
baby  in  the  ark,  and  set  the  ark  afloat  on  the  river. 
Presently  the  daughter  of  Pharaoh  came  to  the  river 
to  bathe  and  found  the  little  boy  and,  loving  him  im- 
mediately, she  adopted  him  and  wanted  a  nurse  to 
take  care  of  him.  Miraculously  the  mother  was  just 
at  hand  and  consented  to  take  the  little  one  and  nurse 
him.  So  this  mother  took  her  boy  and  nursed  him 
and  cared  for  him  for  wages — no,  not  for  wages,  but 
for  love. 

The  significant  thing  is  that  when  she  cradled  that 
boy  in  her  arms,  she  cradled  in  her  arms  the  destiny 
of  a  nation,  and  more  than  one  nation,  because  it  was 
said  to  Abraham  that  his  wife  should  be  the  mother 
of  nations;  she  held  the  Hebrew  race,  she  held  He- 
brew literature,  Hebrew  theology,  Jerusalem  and  the 
Holy  Land,  Gethsemane,  and  Calvary  in  her  arms — 
because  this  was  Moses  who  was  destined  to  lead 
slaves  out  of  Egypt  and  make  of  them  a  nation  and 
give  them  a  law,  and  organize  them,  and  lead  them  to 
the  very  edge  of  the  promised  land  into  which  they 
would  move  and  occupy;  and  it  was  destined  that 
under  their  administrations  all  the  children  of  the 
earth  should  be  blessed. 

In  other  words,  here  was  a  woman  to  whom  was 
intrusted  the  safety  of  a  state,  the  destiny  of  a  na- 
tion ;  and  it  is  also  true  that  every  nation  must  to  an 
extent  intrust  its  destiny  to  its  mothers. 


232  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

THE  MOTHER  OP  JOSEPH  SMITH 

The  next  story  is  that  about  the  widow  who  was 
left  living  upon  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi  River 
following  the  tragedy  at  Carthage  that  robbed  the 
church  of  its  prophet  and  president,  and  its  patri- 
arch. 

You  remember  how  she  was  left  alone  in  that  day 
when  the  church  was  breaking  up,  when  ambitious 
men  and  false  doctrines  were  wrecking  and  ruining 
that  which  God  had  sought  to  build  up.  From  the 
East,  where  her  father  lived,  there  came  a  plea  that 
she  should  go  and  live  with  him.  There  was  the 
promise  of  ease  and  plenty  and  respectability  (she 
had  not  been  considered  by  the  world  respectable 
from  the  day  when  she  united  her  fortunes  with  the 
"Mormon  prophet").  She  could  renounce  her  reli- 
gion and  go  back  to  her  father's  fold  and  live  in  com- 
fort, but  instead  she  chose  to  live  in  Nauvoo  in  pov- 
erty and  drudgery  all  the  days  of  her  life.  The  East 
called  and  so  did  the  West,  for  there  came  also  the 
appeals  from  the  dominant  church  in  the  West  to 
come  to  them  with  her  children  and  they  would  take 
care  of  her ;  but  these,  too,  she  rejected,  and  chose  to 
stay  at  home  in  Nauvoo  in  the  midst  of  strangers, 
teaching  her  boys  the  pure  principles  of  the  gospel  of 
Jesus  Christ  as  they  had  been  intrusted  to  her  hus- 
band, and  teaching  them  reverence  and  honor  of  the 
law. 

And  so,  in  1860,  she  delivered  to  the  church  her 


Mother's  Place  in  Our  Lives  233 

son,  and  the  church  received  him  on  the  6th  day  of 
April.  She  had  kept  her  charge.  A  little  later,  for 
good  measure  she  gave  Alexander,  who  was  to  be  the 
presiding  patriarch  of  the  church,  and  David,  who 
was  destined  to  write  some  of  the  songs  that  we  yet 
sing. 

We  may  say  that  at  that  critical  time  when  she 
gathered  her  children  about  her  in  the  old  Mansion 
House  of  Nauvoo,  and  made  her  decision,  she  held  in 
her  hands  the  destiny  of  the  church;  in  her  hands 
was  the  reorganization  of  the  church,  and  the  return 
to  Zion.  If  she  had  not  proved  true  I  might  not 
be  here  preaching  to-day,  and  what  is  worse,  you 
might  not  be  here  as  a  congregation.  What  would 
have  happened  if  she  had  proved  unstable  or  untrue  ? 
Of  course,  the  Lord  would  have  found  some  other 
way,  but  from  a  human  standpoint  the  destiny  of  the 
church  was  intrusted  to  this  mother,  as  it  often  is  to 
mothers. 

Women  have  no  priesthood,  it  is  true,  but  in  some 
regards  they  are  the  greatest  religious  teachers,  and 
always  have  been.  They  seem  to  have  a  simple  faith 
that  is  not  vexed  by  some  of  the  things  that  come 
into  the  minds  of  men.  When  the  disciples  doubted 
and  slept,  the  women  were  faithful;  when  the  dis- 
ciples said,  "It  is  all  over;  let's  go  fishing,"  the 
women  went  to  the  tomb — faithful  even  to  the  death. 
It  has  been  said  that  women  were  the  last  at  the  cross 
and  the  first  at  the  resurrection. 


234  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

THE  MOTHER  OF  JESUS 

The  third  story  is  that  about  Mary,  the  mother  of 
Jesus.  When  we  stop  to  think  that  a  woman  moth- 
ered the  Son  of  God  when  he  was  a  little  boy,  that  she 
washed  his  face  and  mended  his  clothes,  that  she 
corrected  him,  bound  up  his  finger  when  it  was  cut, 
and  that  she  rocked  him  to  sleep  in  her  arms — we 
may  say  that  when  she  did  that  she  was  cradling  in 
her  arms  the  hope  of  humanity. 

So,  then,  we  see  back  of  Moses,  the  Hebrew  girl  to 
whom  was  intrusted  the  destiny  of  a  nation ;  and  we 
see  back  of  Joseph,  his  mother  Emma,  to  whom  was 
intrusted  the  destiny  of  the  church ;  and  we  see  back 
of  the  figure  of  Jesus  Christ,  his  mother,  Mary,  to 
whom  was  intrusted  the  destiny  of  humanity.  And 
the  experiences  of  these  three  women  come  home  to 
the  heart  of  every  mother,  because  no  mother  can 
tell  all  that  is  intrusted  to  her  care.  Certainly,  .we 
know  one  soul  is  intrusted  to  her  care,  and  perhaps 
many.  No  one  knows — church,  state,  humanity  look 
to  her. 

MOTHERHOOD  SHOULD  BE  GENERAL 

Every  married  woman  at  some  time  in  her  life 
ought  to  have  the  experience  of  motherhood  or  she 
will  miss  one  of  the  finest  things  in  life.  I  want  to 
approach  this  thought  with  a  good  deal  of  caution, 
because  it  is  a  delicate  one.  I  remember  how,  after 
my  wife  and  I  had  been  married  for  a  number  of 
years,  we  were  made  to  suffer  because  of  a  thought- 


Mother's  Place  in  Our  Lives  235 

less,  ill-considered,  hard  sermon  that  was  lambasting 
the  childless  home.  Death  had  robbed  our  cradle  of 
the  first  born  and  our  home  was  at  that  time  child- 
less. But  where  children  are  denied  the  home,  there 
is  still  recourse — the  childless  home  may  make  a 
place  for  the  homeless  child.  And  certainly  the  woman 
who  does  this,  to  my  mind,  has  right  to  the  title  of 
mother  and  to  recognition  on  a  day  like  this.  The 
woman  who  is  willing  to  "love  into  maturity  the  child 
that  some  other  woman  has  loved  into  being"  is  en- 
titled to  the  name  of  mother,  and  has  taken  a  mort- 
gage on  .humanity  that  certainly  is  not  a  second 
mortgage. 

Abraham  Lincoln  was  reared  to  maturity  by  a 
woman  who  was  not  his  mother.  Can  you  realize  the 
indebtedness  that  the  world  is  under  to  that  woman  ? 
All  people  in  America  to-day  love  Abraham  Lincoln, 
and  so  do  many  in  foreign  lands;  but  there  was  a 
time  when  no  one  cared  for  him,  excepting  one 
woman,  who  was  willing  to  go  into  a  poor,  old  log 
house  and  take  the  homely  and  unpromising  and  un- 
gainly boy,  Abe  Lincoln,  and  be  a  mother  to  him. 

So,  to-day,  we  meet  here  to  honor  the  name  of 
mother — those  mothers  who  have  taken  into  their 
hearts  and  into  their  homes  by  birth  or  by  adoption 
the  helpless  of  humanity  and  cared  for  them. 

In  conclusion,  perhaps  the  status  of  a  mother  in 
the  home  is  best  set  forth  by  a  selected  poem  that  I 
will  read  to  you,  entitled,  "Mother" : 


236  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

"I  am  the  pillars  of  the  house; 

The  keystone  of  the  arch  am  I. 
Take  me  away,  and  roof  and  wall 
Would  fall  to  ruin  utterly. 

"I  am  the  fire  upon  the  hearth, 

I  am  the  light  of  the  good  sun. 
I  am  the  heat  that  warms  the  earth, 
Which  else  were  colder  than  a  stone. 

"At  me  the  children  warm  their  hands; 

I  am  their  light  of  love  alive. 
Without  me  cold  the  hearthstone  stands, 
Nor  could  the  precious  children  thrive. 

"I  am  the  twist  that  holds  together, 
The  children  in  the  sacred  ring, 
Their  knot  of  love,  from  whose  close  tether 
No  lost  child  goes  a-wandering. 

"I  am  the  house  from  floor  to  floor, 

I  deck  the  walls,  the  board  I  spread; 
I  spin  the  curtains,  warp  and  woof, 
And  shake  the  down  to  be  their  bed. 

"I  am  their  wall  against  all  danger, 

Their  door  against  the  wind  and  snow, 
Thou  whom  a  woman  laid  in  manger, 
Take  me  not  till  the  children  grow!" 


FATHERS'  DAY 

(An  address  at  Lamoni,  Iowa,  October  31,  1915.) 

FATHERS,  this  is  our  day.  Mother  has  bou- 
quets thrown  at  her  for  three  hundred  and 
sixty-four  days  in  the  year;  but  this  is  the 
day  when  we  get  what  is  coming  to  us. 

The  libraries  are  full  of  tributes  that  have  been 
paid  to  mother.  These  tributes  are  deserved;  and 
yet  I  am  remanded  that  it  takes  just  as  many  letters 
to  spell  the  word  father  as  it  does  to  spell  the  word 
mother.  It  takes  just  as  many  letters  to  spell  papa 
as  it  does  mama;  that  is,  the  way  we  spell  mama 
to-day.  It  even  takes  just  as  many  letters  to  spell 
paw  as  it  does  to  spell  maw. 

This  may  be  simply  a  fancy,  but  it  suggests  to  me 
the  thought  that  a  certain  equality  should  exist  be- 
tween father  and  mother.  I  am  reminded  also,  that 
while  it  takes  just  as  many  letters  of  the  alphabet 
to  spell  the  word  father  as  it  does  mother,  after  the 
first  two  letters  the  words  are  identical. 

And  this  perhaps  is  typical  of  the  life  of  the  two 
individuals  who  preside  over  the  home — the  father 
and  the  mother.  The  first  years  of  their  lives  have 
been  spent  individually  and  separately,  but  there 
comes  a  time  when  they  are  united  in  the  holy  bonds 
of  wedlock  and  of  parenthood,  and  after  they  are  as 
one,  in  harmony  with  the  divine  edict  that  was  issued 

237 


238  A  Cup  of  Gold  Water 

in  the  beginning,  ' 'Therefore,  shall  a  man  leave  his 
father  and  his  mother,  and  shall  cleave  unto  his  wife ; 
and  they  shall  be  one  flesh." 

And  so  while  mother  is  the  sweetest,  the  most 
tender  word  in  the  English  language,  father  shares 
it  in  common  with  mother  after  the  first  two  letters. 
Two  thirds  of  the  name  is  held  in  common. 

This  suggests  to  my  mind  the  idea  that  there  is 
a  divinely  appointed  copartnership  between  father 
and  mother.  According  to  the  old  tradition,  and  in 
harmony  with  the  word  of  God,  the  father  is  con- 
sidered the  head  of  the  family.  The  way  in  which 
it  is  stated  is  not  obnoxious  if  we  take  the  definition 
the  Apostle  Paul  gives  us.  He  says,  "The  husband 
is  the  head  of  the  wife  [or  of  the  family]  even  as 
Christ  is  the  head  of  the  church/'  It  is  the  mission 
of  Christ  to  be  the  protector,  the  companion,  the 
lover,  the  partner  of  the  church,  and  in  that  sense 
the  father  is  the  head  of  the  family — not  the  "boss." 

Whenever  you  find  a  home  where  the  father  has 
abdicated  his  lawful  place,  and  has  compelled  or  per- 
mitted the  wife  to  become  the  head  of  affairs,  and 
perform  not  only  her  own  proper  functions,  but  his 
also — you  will  find  that  home  in  nearly  every  in- 
stance a  failure,  and  in  some  instances  it  is  absolutely 
ruined. 

WOULD  YOU  SELL  OUT  TO  ROCKEFELLER? 

I  want  to  talk  to  you  a  few  minutes  this  morning, 
first  about  the  joys  of  fatherhood;  and  second,  about 
the  responsibilities  of  fatherhood. 


Fathers'  Day  239 

A  real  father  is  worth  a  great  deal,  and  it  is  worth 
a  great  deal  to  be  a  father.  I  leave  that  to  the  vote 
of  any  father  in  the  assembly.  You  know  very  well 
that  though  you  may  count  yourself  poor,  John*  D. 
Rockefeller  has  not  enough  to  buy  the  little  hand 
that  nestles  so  confidently  in  your  own;  or  if  your 
children  have  grown  to  manhood  and  womanhood, 
you  know  that  J.  P.  Morgan  has  not  resources  enough 
to  buy  that  thrill  of  pride  and  joy  that  you  feel  in 
your  grown  sons  and  daughters,  and  in  the  pleasure 
that  you  have  in  planning  the  great  things  that  they 
are  to  accomplish. 

It  is  worth  a  great  deal  to  be  a  father.  But  Paul 
tells  us  that  in  the  last  days  some  people  will  be 
without  "natural  affection."  I  was  in  Kansas  City 
last  week  in  one  of  the  largest  and  most  aristocratic 
of  the  department  stores;  and  I  noticed  a  young 
couple  who  came  in  to  do  some  shopping.  They  had 
the  cutest  little  poodle  dog  you  ever  saw.  While  the 
woman  did  the  shopping  the  man  held  the  little  dog 
in  his  arms  like  a  baby.  ,  The  more  I  looked  at  the 
man  the  more  sorry  I  felt  for  the  dog. 

Now,  let  me  tell  you,  right  around  the  corner  and 
down  the  street  from  that  store  is  a  divorce  court, 
and  that  couple  were  going  in  that  direction  when  I 
saw  them  last.  It  was  never  written,  "A  little  dog 
shall  lead  them." 

MURDERED  UNDER  WINGS  OF  STORK 

There  are  some  homes,  it  is  true,  that  are  denied 
children,  where  children  would  be  very  welcome.  We 


240  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

ought  not  to  add  to  the  sorrow  of  any  such  home  by 
any  thoughtless  jibe  or  remark  of  any  kind.  There 
are  homes,  on  the  other  hand,  where  children  are 
nofrwanted — where  they  are  murdered  while  yet  they 
hide  under  the  wings  of  the  stork. 

Do  you  know  where  I  think  such  people  ought  to 
go?  I  will  just  give  you  a  hint  and  you  may  draw 
your  own  conclusions.  They  ought  to  go  where  they 
won't  have  what  they  don't  like.  They  do  not  like 
children.  There  are  no  children  in  hell.  "Of  such 
is  the  kingdom  of  heaven/'  Jesus  said. 

IF  LOVE  HAD  FAILED 

The  responsibility  of  fatherhood  includes  that  of 
love.  Love  is  the  great  factor  that  is  responsible  for 
the  very  existence  of  the  human  race.  The  human 
creature  comes  into  this  world  absolutely  helpless. 
Unless  he  receives  attention  he  will  die  within  two 
or  three  hours.  He  has  nothing  at  all  with  which  to 
buy  his  own  way — only  the  coin  of  love  that  he 
brings  with  him.  But  as  Jesus  Christ  said  in  speak- 
ing to  those  who  were  presently  to  go  over  on  the 
other  side,  "In  my  Father's  house  are  many  man- 
sions. ...  I  go  to  prepare  a  place  for  you,"  so 
when  these  little  child  spirits  come  here  to  this 
world,  he  sends  the  spirit  of  love  before  them  to  pre- 
pare a  place  for  them. 

Think  back  over  the  line  of  your  ancestors,  father, 
grandfather,  great-grandfather,  away  back  yonder; 
mother,  grandmother,  great-grandmother,  back  to 
the  very  beginning  of  time.  If  at  a  single  link  in 


Fathers'  Day  241 

that  great  chain,  love  had  failed,  you  would  not  be 
here  to-day.  This  is  an  impressive  thought.  The 
first  duty  of  fathers  to  their  children  is  that  they 
shall  give  them  the  love  on  which  the  existence  of 
the  race  depends. 

FIGHTING  THE  CHILDREN'S  ENEMIES 

This  means  that  they  will  provide  for  them.  The 
father  is  the  breadwinner;  the  mother  is  the  bread- 
maker.  It  means  that  the  father  shall  provide  the 
things  that  they  need  to  eat  and  to  wear,  a  home  to 
shelter  them,  and  an  education;  and  that  he  shall 
protect  them  against  their  enemies.  In  the  past  the 
father  was  expected  to  go  out  and  fight  all  enemies, 
to  protect  the  children  against  lions,  and  tigers,  and 
savages.  Generally  we  do  not  have  those  things 
nowadays  to  contend  against. 

But  still  there  are  enemies  that  threaten  their  wel- 
fare, and  it  is  the  duty  of  the  father  to  go  out  and 
contend  against  them  by  his  franchise,  and  by  his 
personal  influence;  that  the  saloon,  the  brothel,  and 
the  gambling  den,  and  all  the  lesser  evils  that  would 
destroy  your  children  and  mine  may  be  cast  out  of 
the  community. 

It  is  the  duty  and  the  responsibility  of  a  father 
that  he  do  all  these  things  in  defense  of  his  children 
and  his  neighbor's  children.  But  his  duty  and  re- 
sponsibility do  not  end  there. 

A  CHIP  OFF  THE  OLD  BLOCK 

It  devolves  on  the  father,  then,  equally  with  the 
mother,  to  teach  the  children  morals,  as  well  as  re- 


242  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

ligion — that  they  shall  "Walk  uprightly."  And  I 
know  of  no  way  in  which  he  can  teach  this  so  force- 
fully as  by  his  example. 

You  will  probably  remember  a  story  that  one  of 
our  fathers  told,  I  think  he  is  in  the  audience  to- 
day, at  one  of  our  preaching  meetings.  He  went 
down  to  the  Supply  Store  one  evening,  and  while 
talking  to  the  storekeeper  he  absent-mindedly  helped 
himself  to  some  raisins  from  a  box.  On  the  way 
home  he  became  conscious  that  his  little  boy  was 
tugging  at  his  sleeve,  and  on  being  asked  what  he 
wanted,  the  little  fellow  said,  "Father,  how  many  did 
you  get?  I  got  this  many."  He  had  a  lot  of  them. 

You  may  have  heard  about  the  father  who  was 
walking  across  a  field,  and  he  happened  to  look 
around  and  saw  his  little  boy  stepping  as  far  as  his 
little  legs  would  reach.  He  said,  "What  are  you  do- 
ing?" And  the  little  boy  answered,  "Papa,  I  am 
stepping  in  your  tracks."  They  are  bound  to  step 
in  our  tracks. 

Nine  times  out  of  ten  the  boy  is  a  chip  off  the  old 
block;  or,  perhaps,  -sometimes,  as  the  Frenchman 
said,  "A  chip  off  ze  old  blockhead." 

TEACHINGS  THAT  STICK  LIKE  A  BUR 

It  devolves  on  us  to  teach  our  children  not  only  by 
precept,  but  by  example,  and  we  will  find  that  the 
work  of  the  church,  of  the  Sunday  school,  and  the 
Religio  are  valuable  helps  along  this  line;  but  we 
should  never  forget  that,  after  all,  the  home  is  the 
place  where  we  have  the  greatest  influence. 


Fathers'  Day  _^ 243 

I  have  heard  some  people  reason  along  this  line: 
They  say,  "My  boys  are  bound  to  do  so-and-so  away 
from  home,  so  I  let  them  do  it  at  home.  I  would 
rather  they  would  do  it  at  home  than  to  go  away 
from  home  to  do  it." 

That  always  seemed  to  me  to  be  a  false  line  of 
reasoning.  Sometime  my  boy  may  go  away  from 
home  to  smoke  cigarets;  but  he  will  never  smoke 
them  at  home  with  my  consent,  or  if  I  can  prevent  it. 
Sometime  my  boy  may  go  away  from  home  to 
gamble,  but  he  will  never  gamble  at  home  with  my 
consent;  if  he  does  it  at  all  it  will  be  over  my  pro- 
test. Sometime  my  boy  may  go  away  from  home  to 
drink,  but  he  will  never  drink  at  home  with  my  per- 
mission. 

He  will  never  be  allowed  to  feel  that  the  roof  that 
shelters  and  sanctifies  my  family  altar  will  also 
sanctify  the  cigaret,  the  poker  deck,  and  the  beer 
bottle. 

And  if  he  goes  away  and  does  these  things  I  hope 
that  my  teachings  may  have  so  impressed  his  mind 
that  he  will  be  uneasy  and  unhappy  all  the  time,  and 
that  his  conscience  will  gnaw  at  him  when  he  does 
that  thing  until  finally  he  will  turn  away  from  it 
and  come  back  to  the  home  and  say,  "Father,  your 
teaching  stuck  in  my  mind  like  a  bur  under  a  pack 
saddle,  and  I  could  not  get  rid  of  it." 

That  is  the  sentiment  of  the  second  verse  of  the 
song  we  sang  at  opening: 


244  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

"And  when  my  wayward  feet 
Seek  worldly  pleasures  fleet, 
His  counsel  grave  I  meet, 
Afar  or  near." 

A  JOLLY  GOOD  TIME 

I  do  not  mean  by  this  that  we  should  rob  life  of  all 
joy  and  pleasure.  One  good  father  said  to  me,  "If 
boys  need  recreation,  let  them  saw  wood."  You  need 
not  tell  me  that  sawing  wood  is  recreation.  I  have 
tried  it.  The  wood  should  be  sawed,  it  is  true,  but 
after  the  wood  is  all  sawed,  what  are  we  going  to 
do?  We  should  oppose  evil  practices  and  pleasures, 
but  recognize  legitimate  and  proper  recreation. 

There  is  no  earthly  reason  why  a  Christian  father 
and  a  Christian  mother,  together  with  their  Chris- 
tian sons  and  daughters,  in  a  Christian  home,  should 
not  have  a  jolly  good  time;  so  that  all  the  days  of 
their  lives  the  children  will  look  back  to  that  home, 
not  looking  back  to  the  card  table,  the  theater,  the 
dance  hall,  the  beer  bottle,  but  back  to  the  happy 
home  of  godly  parents  who  were  their  chums  and 
where  they  freely  enjoyed  life. 

Now,  fathers,  this  is  our  day,  and  in  conclusion  I 
want  to  impress  on  your  minds  the  thought  that 
parenthood  is  partnership  with  God;  "Our  Father 
which  art  in  heaven,"  our  father  which  is  on  earth. 
The  two  are  in  partnership,  working  for  the  salva- 
tion of  the  souls  that  are  developing  here  below. 


I 


BLUE  PENCIL  NOTES 

HAVE  a  theory  that  the  rattlesnake  developed 
his  terrible  poison  while  brooding  over  personal 
grievances. 


The  soft  answer  may  have  a  double  meaning.  A 
Catholic  priest  fresh  from  his  glass  and  game  of 
cards  met  a  worldly  young  woman  clad  in  ball  dress 
and  dancing  slippers.  The  priest  frowned  and  said: 
"How  are  you,  daughter  of  Satan?"  With  demure 
courtesy  and  quick  wit,  the  girl  replied:  "How  do 
you  do,  Father?" 

Some  sermons,  like  the  dictionary,  are  full  of 
words,  but  are  too  disconnected  to  be  interesting. 

The  Gettysburg  Speech,  the  Lord's  Prayer,  and  the 
Sermon  on  the  Mount  are  very  brief,  yet  they  endure 
forever.  But  when  Paul  preached  till  midnight  all 
we  know  of  the  sermon  is  that  one  man  went  to  sleep 
and  fell  out  of  the  window. 

Some  men  would  hesitate  to  give  a  disciple  a  cup 
of  cold  water.  But  they  would  willingly  keep  him 
in  hot  water  all  his  life. 

Edison  says  that  the  horse  is  the  most  expensive 
motor  ever  invented,  and  intimates  that  if  the  "first 

245 


246  A  Cup  of  Cold  Water 

servant"  had  been  made  properly  he  need  not  have 
been  bigger  than  a  soap  box  to  develop  one-horse 
power.  This  would  indicate  that  things  were  done 
in  too  much  of  a  hurry  at  the  Creation.  It  has  taken 
a  long  time  to  remedy  matters  and  get  what  we 
need.  But  fortunately  Adam  was  old-fashioned,  (the 
most  old-fashioned  man  that  ever  lived,)  and  no 
doubt  he  preferred  his  horse  to  a  Ford,  and  Eve  to  a 
phonograph. 

A  startling  figure  stood  in  the  gateway  of  hell.  His 
clothing  was  torn  and  bloody  and  muddy — such  por- 
tions of  it  as  were  not  burned  away.  His  flesh  was 
charred  with  liquid  fire  and  pierced  with  bayonets. 
His  face  was  covered  with  a  grotesque  gas  mask.  But 
suddenly,  to  the  surprise  of  all  spectators,  he  threw 
his  mask  in  the  air  and  shouted,  "Hosanna !"  "Who 
is  it?"  asked  His  Majesty.  And  the  Private  Secre- 
tary replied,  "It  is  a  common  soldier  from  the 
trenches  of  Europe.  He  thinks  this  is  heaven." 

Everything  indicates  that  the  forces  of  evil  are 
preparing  for  the  final  "grand  drive."  Truth  every- 
where in  all  forms  and  persons  must  become  militant 
or  be  overwhelmed.  But  we  have  the  assurance  that 
eventually  Jesus  Christ  will  destroy  all  the  works  of 
the  Devil. 


BOOK    FIVE 


The  \Vord  That  Became 
Flesh 


THE  TRANSIENT  GUEST 

Now  to  and  fro  the  night  winds  go, 

And  seek  and  are  not  satisfied; 
They  seek  for  him  who  on  the  dim, 

Far  eastern  hill  was  crucified. 

He  held  them  still  beneath  his  will 

Upon  the  troubled  Galilee, — 
They  wander  now  on  Olive's  brow, 

And  unrebuked  they  vex  the  sea. 

The  night  dew  weeps  where  Jordan  sleeps; 

And  in  Gethsemane  again 
The  moonbeams  seek  the  lowly,  meek, 

Great  Leader  of  the  race  of  men. 

They  cannot  come  to  his  dark  room; 

But  when  at  last  the  night  is  o'er, 
The  morning  sun  gives  light  to  one 

Who  seeks  her  Savior's  lowly  door. 

'Tis  open  quite,  and  filled  with  light, 

For  he  has  risen  up  newborn, — 
A  transient  guest,  the  first  and  best 

To  meet  and  greet  the  Easter  morn. 

And  now  we  know  the  green  and  low, 

Last  inn  to  give  poor  mortals  rest 
Is  brief,  at  most,  with  God  as  host, 

And  every  man  a  transient  guest. 

E.  A.  S. 


THE  WORD  THAT  BECAME  FLESH 

(Sermon  at  Independence,  Missouri,  December  21,  1919.) 

"And  the  Word  was  made  flesh,  and  dwelt  among  us,  full 
of  grace  and  truth." 

YOU  may  sometimes  have  noticed  in  a  crowded, 
busy  city  street  some  person  of  such  striking 
appearance  or  character  that  as  he  passed  by 
every  eye  was  turned  to  observe  him.  Jesus  Christ 
crossed  the  stage  of  human  action  once,  he  passed 
through  this  old  world  once  and  every  eye  has  been 
turned  to  observe  his  passing.  John  looked  up  from 
his  baptizing  in  the  Jordan  and  said,  ' 'Behold  the 
Lamb  of  God,  that  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the 
world !"  Pilate  looked  up  from  his  political  intrigues 
and  said,  "Behold  the  man !"  And  he  added,  appar- 
ently in  some  perplexity,  What  shall  I  do  with  this 
man  that  is  called  Jesus  ? 

That  question  must  be  answered  by  every  person 
some  time.  If  he  doesn't  confront  it  in  this  life  he 
will  certainly  meet  it  in  some  other  world.  And  so 
to-day  all  civilized  nations  are  agreed  in  celebrating 
the  birth  of  our  Lord  and  Master,  the  only  indi- 
vidual who  seems  to  have  so  attracted  the  attention 
of  all  men. 

Every  newspaper  that  comes  to  us,  every  letter 
that  we  read,  every  document  by  its  date  line  says 
that  so  many  centuries,  so  many  years,  so  many 

249 


250  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

months,  so  many  days  ago  Jesus  was  born  into 'the 
world.  All  men  seem  more  or  less  anxious  to  at  least 
claim  his  authority  for  their  undertakings  in  the 
world.  All  kinds  of  fads  and  reforms  and  fashions 
appeal  to  him  and  lay  claim  to  his  authority.  The 
Socialists  tell  us  that  he  was  a  great  socialist ;  Spirit- 
ualists tell  us  that  he  was  a  great  medium;  Mrs. 
Eddy  says  he  was  a  Christian  Scientist,  and  of  course 
all  denominations,  Catholic  and  Protestant,  claim  to 
march  under  his  banner.  It  would  seem  that  all  men 
feel  that  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  is  a  mantle  so 
broad  they  may  hide  under  it  with  any  folly  or  fancy 
that  may  claim  their  allegiance ;  but  we  ought  to  re- 
member that  we  can  bear  the  name  of  Christ  only 
when  we  have  the  Spirit  of  Christ. 

WHY  DID  JESUS   COME  TO  EARTH? 

We  as  a  church  believe  that  we  have  found  Jesus, 
that  we  have  found  the  law  of  life  and  salvation.  If 
so,  it  will  behoove  us  to  study  it  carefully;  and  cer- 
tainly I  do  not  know  where  we  will  find  any  more 
powerful  exposition  of  that  law  than  in  the  life  and 
character  of  Jesus,  the  Master.  The  text  that  I  have 
read  says  that  the  "Word  was  made  flesh  and  dwelt 
among  us,  full  of  grace  and  truth,"  and  in  the  In- 
spired Version  in  the  same  chapter  the  statement  is 
made  explicitly  that  the  Word  of  God  is  the  gospel. 
The  gospel,  then,  became  flesh  and  dwelt  among  us. 

I  wonder  why  God  determined  that  the  law  of 
life  and  salvation  should  become  flesh  and  dwell 
among  men.  I  wonder  why  Jesus  chose  to  take  upon 


The  Word  that  Became  Flesh  251 

himself  flesh  and  blood.  I  think  it  was  because  he 
wanted  to  appeal  to  the  hearts  of  men  and  he  wanted 
to  appeal  to  the  intelligence  of  men.  The  thing  that 
appeals  to  one  will  not  always  appeal  to  the  other.  I 
suppose  that  not  every  young  man  who  falls  in  love 
pauses  to  analyze  the  thing  that  has  happened  to 
him.  It  does  not  interest  his  intelligence,  particu- 
larly; he  does  not  care.  But  certainly  it  has  had  a 
profound  influence  on  his  heart.  On  the  other  hand, 
there  are  many  things  that  we  understand  clearly 
that  have  no  appeal  to  our  hearts.  We  can  work  up 
a  perfectly  intelligent  defense  of  taxation,  for  in- 
stance ;  but  the  man  who  goes  to  purchase  a  marriage 
license  feels  quite  different  to  the  man  who  merely 
gets  a  tax  receipt. 

I  have  pictured  to  myself  Jesus  in  meditation.  I 
have  imagined  him  following  that  occasion  when  in 
the  councils  of  heaven  he  volunteered  to  come  to 
earth  and  undertake  the  salvation  of  man,  and  I  have 
fancied  him  thinking  to  himself :  "Now  I  have  under- 
taken this  mission,  how  shall  I  go  about  the  task  of 
reaching  men?  Shall  I  call  angels  and  send  them 
forth  with  trumpets  to  sound  the  message  through 
the  heavens  so  that  every  living  creature  shall  hear 
the  law  of  life  and  salvation  ?  If  I  do  that,  some  man 
will  look  up  and  say,  'Your  law  is  all  right  for  the 
angels,  but  I  am  no  angel ;  I  am  dragged  in  the  mire ; 
I  may  be  part  angel,  but  I  am  part  beast  and  cannot 
even  attempt  to  live  by  your  law/  Shall  I  summon 
ten  legions  of  angels  and  send  them  forth  to  write 


252  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

billions  of  tracts  and  scatter  them  broadcast  over  the 
land,  like  snowflakes  in  January?  If  I  do,  some  man 
may  look  up  and  say,  What  is  a  printed  page  to  me 
when  God  remains  in  heaven  and  I  am  chained  to  the 
earth?'  Shall  I  summon  the  archangels  and  gather 
together  the  lightnings  of  heaven  and  blaze  the  gos- 
pel upon  the  sky  in  letters  of  fire  so  that  all  men 
may  see?  Men  are  children,  and  if  I  do  that  they 
will  be  afraid.  I  do  not  want  their  fear;  I  want  their 
love." 

Then  I  imagine  that  the  corrugated  brow  is 
smoothed  and  Jesus  says,  "Father,  I  know  how  to 
reach  men ;  I  will  go  to  them  myself  and  I  will  live  the 
law  of  life  and  salvation."  So  it  came  about  that  the 
Word  became  flesh  and  dwelt  among  men.  That  was 
the  only  way  to  reach  men.  That  is  the  secret  of  the 
success  of  some  of  the  men  who  have  represented 
this  church  in  the  past  who  have  not  been  men  ex- 
ceedingly brilliant,  but  they  have  gone  out  among  the 
people  and  have  shared  with  them  their  privations. 
You  would  be  surprised  sometimes  to  follow  the  trail 
of  some  man,  who  in  Independence  is  not  considered 
so  very  forceful;  but  go  out  in  the  rural  districts 
where  he  has  ministered  to  the  needs  of  the  people 
and  you  will  find  that  they  consider  him  a  wonderful 
man,  and  the  secret  is,  that  in-  that  field  in  the  person 
of  that  minister  "the  Word  was  made  flesh  and  dwelt 
among  men." 

HIS  APPEAL  TO  THE  HEART 

The  appeal  of  Jesus  was  to  the  heart.  A  cold,  ab- 
stract statement  of  law  does  not  appeal  to  the  human 


The  Word  that  Became  Flesh  253 

heart.  You  cannot  reach  your  child  by  handing  to 
him  a  written  list  of  things  he  may  do  and  things 
he  must  not  do.  He  will  obey  his  father  either  be- 
cause he  loves  him  or  because  he  fears  him.  Jesus 
chose  to  appeal  to  us  through  the  avenue  of  love,  and 
so  he  attempted  to  identify  himself  with  us  in  all  the 
phases  of  our  lives. 

I  think  that  I  remarked  from  this  stand  when 
preaching  about  the  character  of  Jesus  at  one  time 
in  the  past  that  by  becoming  a  little  child  Jesus 
consecrated  all  childhood  and  took  all  children  into 
his  fellowship ;  by  receiving  birth  from  a  woman  and 
resting  upon  her  bosom  he  consecrated  all  woman- 
hood; and  when  he  became  a  man  of  Galilee  and 
mingled  with  men  he  consecrated  all  manhood,  and 
so  he  has  put  every  man  and  every  woman  and  every 
child  under  obligations  to  him,  and  his  message  is  to 
every  man,  and  woman,  and  child. 

I  do  not  see  any  reason  why  Jesus  Christ  should 
not  haVe  come  into  the  world  as  a  babe.  It  was  the 
most  natural  way  for  him  to  come.  All  of  us  came 
into  the  world  in  that  way,  and  Jesus  wanted  to 
identify  himself  with  us  in  all  things.  And  I  sup- 
pose that  it  was  perfectly  natural  that  he  should  be 
born  of  humble  parentage.  It  is  conceivable  that  he 
could,  if  he  so  desired,  have  been  born  in  some  rich 
Jewish  home  or  in  some  aristocratic  Roman  house- 
hold,,  but  not  very  many  men  are  born  of  rich  or 
aristocratic  parents ;  the  great  men  of  the  world  have 
come  from  humble  surroundings.  So  Jesus  chose  to 


254  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

come  as  he  did  and  identify  himself  with  us.  As  he 
grew  to  manhood  he  had  his  temptations  and  trials 
the  same  as  we  do. 

Jesus  was  a  man  of  sorrow  and  acquainted  with 
grief.  He  knew  what  it  was  to  lose  his  friends  by 
death:  he  loved  Lazarus,  and  Lazarus  died.  He 
knew  that  which  is  infinitely  harder  to  bear,  the 
treachery  of  his  friends:  Judas  sold  him  for  thirty 
pieces  of  silver,  and  Peter  denied  him.  If  we  are  to 
trust  the  Apostle  Paul,  Jesus  was  subject  to  the  very 
temptations  that  appeal  to  you  and  me.  All  of  the 
temptations  that  come  to  the  normal  man  Jesus  met 
and  overcame,  and  he  endured  privations  as  he  went 
out  in  his  missionary  work  homeless  and  practically 
penniless.  On  a  certain  occasion  he  voiced  the  sad 
lamentation,  "The  birds  of  the  air  have  their  nests, 
and  the  foxes  have  holes,  but  the  Son  of  Man  hath 
not  where  to  lay  his  head."  Some  of  our  missionaries, 
perhaps,  who  have  gone  into  some  city  or  village  at 
night  with  no  place  to  go  and  not  a  single  friend, 
have  walked  the  streets  and  seen  the  windows  of 
many  homes  lighted  up,  but  no  place  for  them,  have 
perhaps  realized  how  Jesus  felt  when  he  walked 
through  Galilee  and  saw  those  little  villages  among 
the  hills  with  their  windows  lighted  up,  but  no  place 
for  him  to  lay  his  head.  He  encountered  all  these 
things,  including  death  on  the  cross,  because  he 
wanted  to  come  here  and  identify  himself  with  man. 
And  I  believe  in  that  you  will  find  the  secret  of  the 


The  Word  that  Became  Flesh  255 

atonement- — in  his  desire  to  identify  himself  with 
man. 

Out  of  all  that  experience  came  the  great  invita- 
tion that  he  voices,  found  in  Matthew  11:  "Come 
unto  me  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy  laden,  and  I 
will  give  you  rest.  Take  my  yoke  upon  you,  and 
learn  of  me ;  for  I  am  meek  and  lowly  in  heart :  and 
ye  shall  find  rest  unto  your  souls.  For  my  yoke  is 
easy,  and  my  burden  is  light." 

Most  of  us  know  what  it  is  to  bear  burdens.  There 
may  be  a  few  very  young  people  who  go  singing 
through  life,  thus  far  at  least,  with  their  shoulders 
straight  and  not  bearing  any  burdens ;  but  man  does 
not  need  to  live  very  long  until  he  finds  his  shoulders 
borne  down  with  burdens  of  sorrow  and  perplexity 
and  toil  and  adversity  and  possibly  temptation  and 
sin.  Jesus  says :  "Come  unto  me  all  ye  that  labor  and 
are  heavy  laden  and  I  will  give  you  rest."  Lay  aside 
those  burdens  of  unnecessary  anxiety  and  worry ;  lay 
off  those  evil  habits,  temptations,  and  worldly  cares ; 
cast  them  all  aside  and  take  upon  your  shoulders  the 
legitimate  burden  of  responsibility  and  service;  but 
his  yoke  goes  with  it  and  his  yoke  is  easy  and  his 
burden  is  light  and  ye  shall  find  rest  to  your  souls. 
That  is  the  wonderful  message  that  comes  to  us  when 
we  think  about  the  Master.  I  wish  that  we  could  all 
drink  it  in  and  realize  what  it  means. 

HIS  APPEAL  TO  THE  BRAIN 

Jesus  desired,  also,  as  I  have  said,  to  appeal  to  the 
intelligence  of  man.  It  is  difficult  for  man  to  under- 


256  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

stand  the  idea  of  God  in  the  abstract.  To  think 
about  God  just  as  an  abstract  idea  is  very  difficult 
and  men  for  ages  past  have  been  endeavoring-  to 
understand  that  idea.  Every  idol  that  man  ever 
carved  out  of  wood  or  stone  represented  an  effort  to 
understand  God.  It  was  his  attempt  to  visualize 
something  that  would  aid  his  imagination  in  an  effort 
to  comprehend  God.  Of  course,  now  it  seems 
ridiculous  and  absurd.  Little  better,  perhaps,  were 
the  creeds,  along  the  same  line.  They  represented 
man's  effort  to  understand  the  abstract  idea  of  God ; 
and  it  has  been  a  task  almost  insurmountable. 

It  seems  almost  that  God  himself  in  attempting  to 
reveal  his  character  to  man  comes  against  a  difficulty 
that  perplexes  even  him.  It  is  not  that  he  is  not 
willing  to  reveal  himself,  but  it  is  so  difficult  for 
man  to  comprehend.  How  can  a  man  whose  abilities 
are  taxed  to  administer  the  affairs  of  a  nation  or  a 
state  or  a  village,  or  even  his  own  home — how  can 
he  understand  the  great  Being  who  builded  the  earth 
and  administers  the  affairs  of  the  universe  ?  In  what 
terms  can  God  speak  that  we  will  understand,  that 
we  will  not  misunderstand  and  misconstrue?  In 
section  85,  God  says,  "Unto  what  shall  I  liken  these 
things  that  ye  may  understand."  He  seems  face  to 
face  with  that  problem  that  I  have  mentioned:  I 
understand  these  things,  but  to  what  shall  I  liken 
them  that  men  can  understand  ? 

But  we  can  understand  Jesus ;  and  as  a  last  resort 
— perhaps  not  the  last  resort  of  divinity,  but  the  best 


The  Word  that  Became  Flesh  257 

recourse — Jesus  came  into  the  world  and  the  "word 
became  flesh"  so  that  we  could  understand  it.  There 
cannot  be  propounded  any  printed  or  spoken  state- 
ment of  the  law  of  life  and  salvation  that  will  apply 
to  man  that  will  be  understood  by  him  if  it  is  di- 
vested of  the  personality  and  the  life  of  Jesus  Christ. 
It  would  not  appeal  to  him,  would  not  be  understood. 
But  he  came  to  interpret  God  in  terms  that  would 
appeal  to  man  and  that  might  be  understood  by  man ; 
in  other  words,  he  came  to  live  the  law  of  God. 

Does  God  in  the  Bible  command  obedience  ?  Jesus 
Christ  was  obedience!  Does  God  command  love? 
Jesus  Christ  was  love!  Does  God  require  sacrifice? 
The  whole  life  of  Jesus  Christ  was  sacrifice.  Every 
chapter,  every  line,  every  word  in  the  law  of  God  as 
we  have  it  in  the  printed  page,  Jesus  Christ  came 
here  to  live,  and  certainly  in  our  status  as  members 
and  as  a  ministry  we  ought  to  carry  with  us  his  ex- 
ample, his  precepts,  and  his  personal  touch,  because 
we  can  hardly  find  ourselves  in  a  situation  where  we 
will  not  find  some  example  that  Jesus  Christ  set  that 
will  help  us  to  solve  that  particular  perplexity.  His 
every  human  deed  was  beneficence  and  his  every  di- 
vine deed  was  full  of  blessing.  I  mean  that  in  his 
human  deeds,  such  as  you  and  I  can  perform,  all  that 
he  did  was  for  the  good  of  humanity.  And  in  his  di- 
vine deeds,  his  miracles,  he  also  was  beneficent.  I 
cannot  recall  that  he  ever  exercised  his  supernatural 
powers  to  bring  harm  to  a  single  individual. 

You  remember  the  occasion  when  he  and  his  dis- 
ciples were  passing  through  Samaria  and  he  wanted 
9 


258  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

to  spend  the  night  in  a  certain  village,  and  the 
Samaritans  would  not  permit  them  to  remain  in  the 
city  over  night,  the  disciples  spoke  up  and  said  to 
Jesus,  "What  shall  we  do?  Shall  we  pray  the 
Father  to  send  down  fire  and  destroy  them?"  That 
was  man  speaking  then.  Jesus  answered  them  and 
said,  "Ye  know  not  what  manner  of  spirit  ye  are  of ; 
for  the  Son  of  Man  is  not  come  to  destroy  men's  lives 
but  to  save  them.  I  think  sometimes  we  might  well 
ask  ourselves  the  question,  What  spirit  am  I  of? 
We  should  be  sure  that  we  are  of  the  spirit  of 
Jesus  Christ,  who  came  not  to  destroy  but  to  save. 
He  came  to  transform  human  lives,  and  he  trans- 
formed them  by  his  personal  contact.  He  came 
not  only  to  teach,  but  to  exemplify  •  in  his  life. 
In  that  particular,  he  was  a  supreme  teacher.  There 
is  not  a  thing  that  he  teaches  us  that  he  did  not  first 
live.  His  gospel  is  the  power  of  God  unto  salvation, 
and  the  greatest  miracle  that  Jesus  ever  wrought 
was  in  the  transformation  of  human  lives  as  he  came 
into  contact  with  them.  That  was  the  greatest  dem- 
onstration of  his  power  when  he  was  here  and  it  is 
the  greatest  demonstration  of  his  power  to-day; 
greater  than  the  healing  of  the  blind,  the  cleansing 
of  lepers,  the  raising  from  the  dead,  is  the  trans- 
formation that  is  wrought  in  human  lives,  and  you 
and  I  can  remember  miracles  of  that  kind  to-day. 

OUR  GREATEST  NEED  TO-DAY 

If  I  were  asked  the  question,  What  is  the  greatest 
need  of  the  church  to-day,  what  do  you  suppose  I 


The  Word  that  Became  Flesh  259 

would  answer?  What  do  you  think  is  the  greatest 
need  of  the  church  to-day?  Is  the  greatest  need  of 
the  church  that  God  should  hand  us  five  millions  of 
dollars  and  say  to  us,  "Use  it  in  buying  land  in  Zion 
and  in  sending  a  great  force  of  missionaries  into  all 
the  world"  ?  I  think  if  that  were  our  greatest  need, 
God  could  very  easily  supply  it.  This  summer  I 
tramped  through  the  gold  fields  of  Colorado,  and  I 
thought  when  there:  "If  our  greatest  need  were 
money,  God  could  tell  me  where  we  could  find  untold 
wealth  for  the  church  in  a  very  short  time."  But 
evidently  our  needs  along  that  line  must  be  sup- 
plied by  the  legitimate  and  usual  avenues  of  tithes 
and  offerings  through  sacrifice. 

To  my  mind,  the  greatest  need  of  the  church  to- 
day is  a  thorough  baptism  in  the  Spirit  of  Jesus 
Christ.  Paul  tells  us  that,  "As  many  of  you  as  have 
been  baptized  into  Christ  have  put  on  Christ."  If  we 
have  put  on  Christ  we  have  conformed  ourselves  to 
the  nature  of  Christ,  we  have  taken  on  ourselves  his 
nature. 

I  notice  that  in  this  old  world  everything  clearly 
acts  in  harmony  with  its  own  nature.  Syrup  never 
forgets  to  be  sticky,  vinegar  never  forgets  to  be  sour, 
and  iron  never  forgets  to  be  heavy.  But  sometimes 
we  forget  to  be  Christlike.  Jesus  Christ  never  for- 
got to  be  Christlike,  because  he  was  Christ;  and  if 
we  fully  put  on  the  nature  of  Christ  we  will  never 
forget  to  be  Christlike,  because  we  will  always  act 
in  harmony  with  our  inner  natures. 


260  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

I  think  there  is  a  great  need  that  we  should  be 
baptized  more  thoroughly  with  the  Spirit  of  Jesus 
Christ.  I  will  say  frankly  that  I  sometimes  have 
seen  among  our  church  members  quarreling  and  con- 
tention and  bickering  and  fault-finding  and  division, 
and  have  found  myself  that  it  is  so  difficult  to  avoid 
this  thing,  that  in  hours  of  despondency  I  have  said, 
"Is  there  on  earth  a  single  Christian,  one  man  who 
is  thoroughly  Christian  all  the  way  through?"  But 
then  has  come  to  me  this  cheering  thought,  ' 'Though 
all  men  fail,  Jesus  is  the  same  to-day  as  he  was 
yesterday,"  and  he  has  blazed  the  trail.  Though  I 
might  fall  often,  he  will  assist  me  to  rise  again  and 
follow  in  his  footsteps;  and  what  he  will  do  for  me, 
certainly  he  will  do  for  others.  Then,  as  I  look 
around  me  and  see  some  noble  character  among  the 
Saints  who  is  conforming  to  the  law  of  life  and  sal- 
vation, my  heart  is  encouraged,  and  I  look  around 
and  see  others — I  believe  there  are  many  of  them, 
though,  like  myself,  they  may  make  their  mistakes 
and  in  hours  of  weakness  may  for  a  while  cease  to  be 
Christlike,  yet  they  are  endeavoring  to  endure :  they 
have  within  themselves  that  spirit  that  eventually 
will  transform  their  lives. 

I  believe  that  is  the  hope  of  the  church.  I  believe 
our  hope  is  in  those  who  are  trying  to  carry  on  the 
work  of  Christ,  who  have,  like  the  Master,  trans- 
formed the  word  of  God  into  a  living  being,  who  have 
made  it,  as  the  Apostle  Paul  said,  a  living  epistle 
known  and  read  of  all  men. 


The  Word  that  Became  Flesh  261 

I  hope  and  pray  that  our  hearts  may  be  touched 
by  His  Spirit,  that  our  lives  may  be  like  his  life,  that 
it  may  be  said  of  us  that  in  our  lives  the  "Word  be- 
came flesh  and  dwelt  among  men,  full  of  grace  and 
truth." 


NOT  BY  BREAD  ALONE 

(A  Thanksgiving  Day  sermon,  Independence,  Missouri,  1919.) 

"Giving  thanks  always  for  all  things  unto  God  and  the 
Father  in  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ." — Ephesians 
5 : 20. 

"Which  hope  we  have  as  an  anchor  of  the  soul,  both  sure 
and  steadfast,  and  which  entereth  into  that  within  the  vail; 
whither  the  forerunner  is  for  us  entered,  even  Jesus,  made 
an  high  priest  for  ever  after  the  order  of  Melchisedec."- 
Hebrews  6:19,  20. 

WHAT  HAVE  WE  TO  BE  THANKFUL  FOR? 

WE  MIGHT  ask  ourselves  this  morning  what 
there  is  that  we  have  to  be  thankful  for. 
And  I  presume  that  a  man  who  has  been 
accustomed  to  think  mostly  about  material  things 
and  the  gratification  of  the  physical  desires  would 
immediately  answer  that  we  ought  to  be  thankful  for 
food  and  clothing  and  shelter,  and  for  coal  in  the  bin, 
while  the  individual  who  is  of  a  very  religious 
temperament  and  inclined  to  think  about  spiritual 
things  would  say,  "Let  us  be  thankful  for  intelli- 
gence, for  liberty,  and  for  religion."  But  the  Apostle 
Paul,  who  seems  to  have  plumbed  the  depths  of 
human  need  and  scaled  the  heights  of  divine  mercy, 
said  we  ought  to  be  thankful  in  all  things. 

Man  is  of  a  dual  nature  and  therefore  has  a  two- 
fold cause  for  thanksgiving.    We  are  dependent  upon 

262 


Not  by  Bread  Alone  263 

the  physical  for  many  things,  and  certainly  it  is  not 
without  its  importance.  The  spirit  depends  upon 
physical  contrivances  almost  altogether  for  its  power 
to  perceive.  It  is  true  that  we  believe  that  some 
things  are  perceived  spiritually,  though  scientists 
would  not  admit  that,  probably ;  but  as  a  rule  almost 
everything  is  perceived  through  physical  apparatus. 
And  perhaps  to  a  greater  extent,  we  are  dependent 
upon  physical  things  for  our  power  of  expression  and 
our  ability  to  execute  our  desires. 

It  is  true  that  once  in  a  while  a  spiritualist  claims 
to  tip  the  table  or  perform  some  act  of  levitation 
without  the  intervention  of  mechanical  contrivances ; 
but  almost  exclusively  the  spirit  depends  upon  some 
mechanical  contrivance  for  its  power  of  execution. 
In  other  words,  the  spirit  sees  through  material 
eyes;  it  must  have  ears  with  which  to  hear;  it  de- 
pends upon  hands  with  which  to  work  out  its  desires ; 
and  it  depends  upon  legs  for  locomotion.  Of  course, 
in  this  age  of  the  automobile,  people  have  almost  dis- 
pensed with  the  use  of  legs,  except  perhaps  upon 
the  stage. 

With  all  due  regard  for  Christian  Science,  I  cannot 
sit  at  the  bottom  of  the  hill  and  by  thinking  place 
myself  at  the  top  of  the  hill.  I  must  have  recourse 
to  some  sort  of  mechanical  contrivance  or  physical 
exertion  to  change  my  location.  I  cannot  sit  in  my 
library  and  spade  my  garden  by  mental  suggestion. 
I  wish  I  could. 


264  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

DINING  WITH  THE  ANIMALS 

In  order  to  support  these  mechanical  and  physical 
contrivances  upon  which  the  spirit  depends,  there 
has  been  built  up  in  man  that  com  plicated  alimentary 
system  by  which  his  food  is  ground,  digested,  and 
assimilated,  and  perhaps  that,  more  than  anything 
else,  emphasizes  his  kinship  with  the  animals. 

We  dine  every  day  with  the  animals.  We  eat  with 
lions  and  tigers,  with  wolves  and  coyotes.  I  do  not 
presume  that  it  is  an  especially  delectable  spectacle 
to  watch  a  bird  or  beast  of  prey  picking  at  a  carcass, 
but  what  essential  difference  is  there  between  that 
and  you  and  I  eating  the  Thanksgiving  turkey,  pro- 
viding we  had  the  turkey?  Of  course,  we  wear 
clothing  instead  of  feathers,  excepting  perhaps  in 
some  of  the  evening  restaurants  where  more  feathers 
are  worn  than  clothes.  We  have  napkins  and  silver- 
ware and  sometimes  finger  bowls.  But  what  essen- 
tial difference  is  there  ?  We  still  are  eating  with  the 
beasts. 

We  cannot  change  the  principle  if  we  dispense  en- 
tirely with  animal  food  and  become  vegetarians.  We 
still  eat  oats  with  the  horse,  wheat  with  the  birds, 
and  corn  with  the  hog;  and  even  if  we  indulge  in 
"angel's  food"  (and  perhaps  some  of  us  will  get  more 
of  that  food  in  this  world  than  in  the  next),  the 
principle  remains  the  same.  We  cannot  live  on  high 
ideals.  The  old  receipt  of  faith  and  apple  dump- 
lings goes  further. 

Still  this  thought  need  not  be  repulsive,  though  I 


Not  by  Bread  Alone  265 

believe  there  are  some  Oriental  races  who  regard 
the  act  of  eating  as  being  shameful  and  hide  them- 
selves when  they  eat.  Jesus  sanctified  the  social 
board  when  he  ate  the  honey  comb  and  broiled  fish 
after  his  resurrection;  and  Jesus  it  was  who  taught 
us  to  pray,  "Give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread."  Al- 
most in  the  same  breath  with  which  he  mentioned 
the  great  spiritual  conception  of  the  kingdom  of 
heaven,  he  mentioned  and  pleaded  for  the  material 
loaf  made  of  the  grains  that  are  eaten  by  the  birds 
and  beasts. 

DINING  WITH  GOD 

But  Jesus  also  voiced  another  thought.  He  said 
that  man  shall  not  live  by  bread  alone.  In  that  we 
are  distinguished  from  the  animals.  While  man  may 
dine  with  the  animals  in  a  physical  sense,  in  a  spirit- 
ual sense  he  dines  with  God.  Man  has  his  feet  in  the 
mire,  but  his  head  in  the  clouds ;  bound  to  earth  by 
his  physical  organism,  he  is  wedded  to  heaven  by  his 
spiritual  life. 

So  to-day  when  we  meet  to  give  thanks  to  God,  we 
may  thank  him  not  only  for  the  physical  things,  but 
also  for  the  spiritual  things,  namely;  intelligence, 
truth,  light,  liberty,  religion,  and  brotherhood.  As 
we  have  said,  we  have  a  two-fold  cause  for  thank- 
fulness, the  material  and  the  spiritual. 

I  believe  it  was  a  fact  that  the  pre-war  sermons  on 
Thanksgiving  Day  and  the  prayers  that  were  offered 
on  those  days  dwelt  very  largely  upon  material  bless- 
ings. At  any  rate,  that  is  my  impression  as  I  look 


266  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

back.  We  emphasized  generally  the  abundant  harvest 
that  had  been  gathered  in,  the  wonderful  prosperity 
that  had  blessed  us  here  in  America.  The  reason  for 
that  was  that  before  the  war  America  was  a  land  of 
repletion,  gorged  with  all  kinds  of  material  blessings. 

A  STRANGER  IN  THE  LAND 

I  remember  going  on  a  steamboat  excursion  down 
the  Mississippi  River.  There  were  many  children  on 
board  and  they  were  served  with  sandwiches.  I  pre- 
sume I  saw  fifty  children  eat  the  meat  and  throw  the 
bread  into  the  river.  A  thing  like  that  would  not 
have  happened  in  any  other  land  on  earth.  No  wolf 
came  snarling  at  the  American  door.  The  specter  of 
hunger  never  stalked  through  the  land. 

But  during  the  past  few  years  we  have  had  a 
stranger  in  our  midst,  and  that  stranger  is  the  fear 
of  possible  famine  that  has  peered  in  at  many  a  win- 
dow. We  have  been  more  or  less  circumscribed  in 
our  living.  We  have  been  told  what  to  eat  and  how 
much  we  should  eat.  To-day  in  the  midst  of  the  coal 
strike  and  facing  a  possible  railroad  strike,  we  begin 
to  realize  what  it  would  mean  to  have  a  general  strike 
throughout  the  land.  It  would  mean  in  many  com- 
munities, at  least,  famine,  actual  starvation.  We 
may  fare  better  here  where  we  have  access  to  the 
corn  bins  of  Missouri  and  the  wheat  bins  of  Kansas  ; 
but  it  goes  without  question,  it  needs  no  prophet  to 
predict  that  when  that  day  comes,  as  evidently  it 
may  come,  there  will  be  widespread  suffering 


Not  by  Bread  Alone  267 

throughout  the  United  States.  Even  as  it  is,  we 
have  felt  to  a  certain  extent  the  danger  and  have 
sensed  the  menace. 

OUR    NEEDS    SUPPLIED 

And  yet  most  of  us  have  received  during  the 
year,  if  not  an  abundance,  at  least  sufficient  to  sup- 
ply our  needs,  if  not  our  wants.  You  know  there  is  a 
difference  between  one's  needs  and  his  wants.  The 
Lord  says  that  a  man  shall  receive  according  to  his 
needs  and  just  wants.  To  illustrate  this :  I  overheard 
two  boys  at  the  breakfast  table  one  morning  indulge 
in  a  colloquy.  The  older  boy  told  his  brother  not  to 
drink  so  much  milk,  but  the  younger  brother  said, 
"The  doctor  said  I  might  drink  all  I  want."  "No," 
said  the  elder  boy,  "the  doctor  did  not  say  you  should 
have  all  the  milk  you  want:  he  said  you  should  have 
all  you  need,  and  in  your  case  there  is  a  vast  differ- 
ence— there  is  about  five  gallons  difference."  Of 
course  he  took  the  liberty  of  an  elder  brother,  and 
exaggerated. 

But  often  there  is  a  vast  difference  between  our 
needs  and  our  wants;  however,  the  Lord  has  be- 
stowed upon  us  at  this  time  sufficient  to  meet  our 
needs;  and  so  to-day  we  are  justified  in  humbly  re- 
turning thanks  to  him  that  he  has  watched  over  this 
Nation,  and  especially  this  community,  and  granted 
the  necessities  of  life. 

THE    LANTERN    TO    OUR    FEET 

Going  back  to  the  question  of  our  spiritual  bless- 
ings. These  are  dark  and  dangerous  days.  You  do 


268  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

not  need  to  be  told  that — you  simply  have  to  read 
the  daily  papers  to  get  that  impression  first  hand. 
But  you  know  that  the  darker  and  the  more  danger- 
ous and  tempestuous  the  night,  the  more  we  appreci- 
ate the  lantern  that  we  carry  in  our  hands  to  guide 
our  footsteps;  and  so  the  more  perilous  and  chaotic 
the  times  become,  the  more,  as  a  people,  we  appreci- 
ate the  divine  light  of  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ 
that  God  has  given  us  to  guide  our  footsteps  in  these 
last  days. 

Not  for  nothing  did  those  Saints  back  yonder  name 
this  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints. 
You  and  I  who  have  lived  some  years  in  the  world 
have  only  to  look  back  and  remember  the  early  ser- 
mons that  we  heard  some  years  ago.  You  will  re- 
member that  almost  every  series  of  sermons  had  one 
in  it  devoted  to  the  signs  of  the  times.  We  have  not 
been  taken  unawares;  we  have  looked  for  these 
things,  and  in  that  perhaps  we  have  been  distin- 
guished above  other  people. 

PAUL,    YOU    WERE    RIGHT! 

All  these  things  we  say  we  have  expected.  We 
have  heard  so  often  an  exegesis  of  that  remarkable 
saying  of  the  Apostle  Paul,  "This  know,  that  in  the 
last  days  perilous  times  shall  come."  Some  months 
ago  I  happened  to  be  in  Omaha  on  that  Sunday  night 
when  the  mob  destroyed  the  courthouse  and  hanged 
the  mayor  till  he  was  nearly  dead,  and  finally  killed 
and  burned  the  negro  they  were  searching  for,  and 
with  a  rope  around  the  charred  remains  dragged 


Not  by  Bread  Alone  269 

them  about  the  streets  until  morning1.  I  thought 
then,  "Paul,  you  were  right ;  we  have  been  told  for  a 
quarter  of  a  century  that  man  was  becoming  more 
civilized,  more  gentle,  more  Godlike;  but,  Paul,  you 
were  right,  for  you  said  that  in  the  last  days  perilous 
times  should  come  and  that  men  should  be  fierce,  and 
treacherous,  and  lawless." 

And  we  have  seen  an  exhibition  of  that  not  only  in 
foreign  countries,  but  in  Boston,  in  Chicago,  in 
Washington,  in  Omaha,  and  Centralia,  and  many 
other  cities  within  the  past  year.  But  in  the  midst  of 
all  this  tumult  and  confusion  and  chaos  in  the  world, 
we  have,  with  the  Apostle  Paul,  an  anchor  that 
reaches  within  the  veil,  sure  and  steadfast,  and  we 
believe  that  we  do  not  need  to  fear  greatly,  for  it 
will  keep  the  soul. 

We  have  seen  how  the  predictions  concerning 
these  things  are  coming  to  pass!  but  the  same 
prophets  tell  us  about  the  building  up  of  Zion  and  the 
coming  of  Christ  and  the  final  dawn  of  peace  and 
justice  on  this  earth.  And  we  can  look  beyond  the 
storm  to  something  that  others  may  not  see  or 
understand. 

WARS  TO  COME 

Let  us  consider  for  a  few  moments  some  of  the 
things  that  engage  our  attention  in  the  world,  the 
first  of  these  being,  perhaps,  the  question  of  war.  A 
little  over  a  year  ago  we  were  at  war;  now  we  are 
said  to  be  at  peace — but  there  is  no  peace.  We  are 
talking  about  peace,  but  it  is  something  that  seems 


270  The  Ward  that  Became  Flesh 

to  be  taken  from  the  earth,  in  harmony  with  the 
prediction  contained  in  the  Doctrine  and  Covenants. 
Following  the  close  of  the  World  War,  when  the  na- 
tions came  together  they  had  such  an  opportunity  as 
never  was  given  to  the  nations  of  men  since  Christ 
came. 

All  humanity  was  sick  and  tired  of  war;  their 
souls  revolted  against  the  thought  of  more  battle- 
fields ;  the  slogan  on  the  lips  of  every  soldier  of  every 
land  was,  "Never  again !"  And  so,  I  say,  when  the  na- 
tions came  together  around  the  peace  table  they  had 
such  an  opportunity  as  they  never  had  before  to  form 
some  sort  of  a  confederation  of  nations,  a  brother- 
hood of  men  which,  though  it  might  not  prevent  all 
wars,  at  least  would  reduce  the  danger. 

But  it  is  said  that  Opportunity  knocks  but  once  at 
the  door,  and  evidently  it  does  not  linger  long;  and, 
having  departed,  it  cannot  be  seized,  for  it  must  be 
seized  from  before.  So,  if  I  understand  the  situation, 
the  opportunity  perhaps  has  already  passed. 

There  has  come  a  revulsion  of  feeling.  Already 
we  forget  the  horror.  The  nations,  almost  all  of 
them,  now  are  giving  their  attention  again  to  their 
own  national  aspirations;  they  are  beginning  again 
to  depend  upon  the  force  of  their  own  arms,  and  we 
may  have  a  return  to  the  old  secret  treaties  and 
intrigue  that  without  doubt  will  result  in  further  and 
worse  wars.  So  the  prediction  of  the  Master  that  we 
should  hear  of  wars  and  rumors  of  wars,  without 
doubt  will  continue  to  the  end. 


Not  by  Bread  Alone  271 

Then  there  is  the  one  struggle  that  is  going  on  be- 
tween capital  and  labor,  and  there  is  also  within  labor 
itself  a  war  going  on  between  the  radical  and  the  con- 
servative. The  plan  and  the  aim  and  the  desire  of 
the  radical  is  revolution.  He  does  not  promote  strikes 
to  get  better  wages  or  more  favorable  hours  or  bet- 
ter working  conditions.  He  regards  every  strike, 
no  matter  how  small,  as  an  incipient  revolution,  and 
a  final  general  strike  he  contemplates  as  a  general 
revolution  that  will  overthrow  this  Government,  and 
all  other  governments.  We  watch  with  some  con- 
cern the  struggle  that  is  going  on. 

THE  DECAY  OF  MORALS 

Together  with  these  things  that  we  have  noted, 
there  is  another  which  fills  us  with  some  concern, 
and  that  is  the  evident  decay  of  morals.  A  corre- 
spondent writing  from  London  to  the  Associated 
Press  just  a  few  days  ago  said  that  Scotland  Yard 
had  unearthed  vice  conditions  in  London  that  make 
the  pre-war  vice  conditions  seem  puritanical.  The 
same  thing  might  be  said  of  America.  The  vice  com- 
missions and  authorities  in  nearly  all  the  large 
cities  are  commenting  on  delinquency,  particularly 
among  young  girls.  The  motherhood  of  the  race  is 
being  poisoned  at  its  source. 

These  things  have  interest  to  us  because  the  Book 
of  Mormon  tells  us  that  If  this  country  is  overthrown 
and  comes  into  bondage  it  will  not  be  because  of  any 
foreign  enemy,  but  it  will  be  because  the  nation  has 
lapsed  into  wickedness.  And  that  is  exactly  in  har- 


272  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

mony  with  the  prediction  of  Abraham  Lincoln  when 
he  said  that  we  did  not  need  to  fear  foreign  aggres- 
sion, that  there  are  not  armies  enough  in  Europe  in 
a  thousand  years  to  make  one  footprint  on  the  Ap- 
palachian Mountains  or  dip  one  cup  of  water  from 
the  Ohio  River — that  our  destructor  would  spring  up 
among  us,  if  it  came  at  all,  and  not  from  abroad. 

This  Nation  was  founded  by  men  who  feared  God. 
They  may  have  been  extremists,  but  they  were  sound 
and  clean  and  dependable,  and  the  work  they  began 
cannot  possibly  be  carried  on  by  a  godless  posterity. 

A  DECAY  OF  RELIGION 

Accompanied  by  this  decay  of  morals,  there  seems 
to  have  been  an  even  further  decay  of  religious 
sentiment  in  the  land.  Here  is  a  little  clipping  from 
the  Literary  Digest  for  November  1,  1919 : 

"Missionary  societies  especially  and  church  people 
of  all  creeds  and  denominations  in  America  'can  find 
material  for  thought/  says  the  Detroit  Free  Press, 
in  the  statement  by  Bishop  Tucker,  of  Kiota,  that 
Japan  sent  a  special  commission  to  the  United  States 
to  study  the  influence  of  Christianity  on  the  lives  of 
the  American  people.  Their  report  on  their  return 
was  that  'while  education,  commerce,  and  industry 
have  been  developed  to  a  wonderful  degree,  there  is 
little  evidence  that  the  Christian  religion  is  regarded 
as  important  by  most  of  the  people.'  The  Free  Press 
giving  the  layman's  view  of  the  matter,  adds  some 
reflections  of  its  own: 

"  'This  is  a  judgment  by  a  presumably  honest  and 


Not  by  Bread  Alone  273 

thoughtful  body  of  outside  observers.  And  it  would 
be  a  courageous  man  who  would  undertake  to  prove 
that  the  Japanese  investigators  were  profoundly  in 
error  in  their  conclusions/  ' 

But  in  the  midst  of  these  things  that  seem  so 
menacing — war,  the  prospect  of  civil  war,  the  ap- 
parent decay  of  morals,  and  the  loss  of  religious 
sentiment — we  as  a  people  have  every  reason  to  give 
thanks  to  God  for  the  gospel  that  has  been  com- 
mitted to  our  care.  We  have  reason  to  give  thanks 
to  Him  for  the  hope  of  the  future,  that  beyond  all 
this  chaos  we  see  a  condition  of  order;  that  beyond 
the  reign  of  injustice  and  criminality  and  lawless- 
ness we  see  the  dawn  of  peace  under  the  dominion 
of  Jesus  Christ,  not  away  off  beyond  the  bounds  of 
time  and  space,  but  here  on  this  old  earth. 

FELLOWSHIP 

We  ought  to  be  thankful  that  we  are  permitted  to 
be  partners  with  God  in  this  work;  and  I  think  we 
ought  to  be  especially  thankful,  and  my  heart  is 
filled  with  gratitude  because  of  the  privilege  to  en- 
joy fellowship  and  brotherhood  with  men  and  women 
of  this  church.  I  regard  that  as  the  greatest  thing 
that  ever  came  into  my  life.  Of  course,  in  harmony 
with  many  men,  I  am  devoutly  thankful  to  God  for 
the  love  of  father  and  mother,  of  wife  and  children. 
I  feel  that  no  life  is  complete  that  has  missed  the  ex- 
perience of  filial  and  marital  and  parental  love — but 
that  is  not  all. 


274  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

God  never  gave  me  brothers  and  sisters,  but 
through  the  gospel  he  opened  up  means  by  which  I 
can  go  out  and  find  brothers  and  sisters  wherever  the 
gospel  message  has  found  its  place  in  human  hearts. 
I  believe  we  ought  to  cultivate  this  spirit  of  fraternal 
brotherhood ;  I  believe  that  it  ought  to  be  the  band 
to  hold  us  together  and  finally  bring  victory. 


"I  HAVE  MEAT  THAT  YE  KNOW 
NOT  OF." 

(Sermon  delivered  at  the  Stone  Church,  Independence,  Mis- 
souri, January  19,  1919.) 

I  HAVE  read  some  verses  from  the  fourth  chapter 
of  John.  I  call  your  attention  more  especially  to 
the  statement  just  read,  "I  have  meat  to  eat  that 
ye  know  not  of."  This  saying  of  the  Master  is  one 
that  might  be  termed  cryptic.  It  has  a  meaning  that 
is  hidden.  It  does  not  appear  on  the  surface.  The 
surface  meaning  is  not  the  one  that  Jesus  had  in 
mind.  We  cannot  imagine  for  a  moment  that  Jesus 
meant,  as  the  disciples  thought  at  first,  that  some 
one  had  secretly  brought  him  meat,  which  he  had 
to  regale  himself  upon  without  their  knowledge. 

His  words  have  a  spiritual  meaning,  which  he  ex- 
plains a  little  further  where  he  says,  "My  meat  is 
to  do  the  will  of  him  that  sent  me,  and  to  finish  his 
work."  This  was  right  in  line  with  the  statement 
that  he  made  early  in  his  ministry,  that  man  should 
not  live  by  bread  alone,  but  by  every  word  that  pro- 
ceedeth  out  of  the  mouth  of  God.  The  bread  arid 
meat  of  Jesus  was  the  Word  of  God,  and  to  do  the 
will  of  God. 

On  another  occasion  he  says,  "I  do  always  the 
things  that  please  the  Father."  This  would  argue  a 
constant  communication  with  God,  a  never  broken 

275 


276  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

touch  with  the  Father.  He  lived  by  every  word  that 
proceeded  from  the  mouth  of  God.  He  did  always  the 
will  of  the  Father;  always  the  things  that  pleased 
the  Father.  He  was  in  communication  with  God 
and  sought  to  know  every  day  what  God  wanted 
him  to  do. 

REVELATION   AND  DUTY 

When  we  analyze  these  texts  in  this  way  they 
suggest  two  ideas :  The  first,  that  of  Revelation ;  and 
the  second,  that  of  Duty.  In  regard  to  the  idea  of 
revelation :  here  was  an  individual  who  claimed  to  be 
in  touch  with  God.  He  was  receiving  spiritual  com- 
munications and  divine  revelation  absolutely  un- 
known to  those  who  stood  at  his  very  elbow,  sur- 
rounded him,  and  talked  with  him  frequently. 

This  would  perhaps  be  regarded  with  a  great  deal 
of  skepticism  by  scientists,  and  certainly  it  would  be 
rejected  entirely  by  agnostics,  who,  not  knowing 
anything  themselves  about  such  matters,  do  not  be- 
lieve that  it  is  possible  for  anyone  else  to  know — I 
mean  nothing  regarding  things  divine,  things  not 
perceived  by  the  ordinary  human  senses.  You  will 
notice  that  in  this  group  of  individuals,  the  one  who 
counted  in  the  history  of  the  world  was  the  man 
who  knew.  And  so  to-day,  the  individual  who  says 
he  does  not  know  may  be  dismissed  without  further 
interrogation. 

There  are  some  things  that  have  come  to  light 
in  the  course  of  history,  both  sacred  and  profane. 
Some  things  that  are  a  common  matter  of  observa- 


I  Have  Meat  that  Ye  Know  Not  of  277 

tion  and  modern  experimentation,  that  should  cause 
us  to  be  veiy  slow  to  say  that  a  thing  is  not  because 
we  have  not  observed  it  and  verified  it.  I  might  use 
a  very  modern  illustration.  Back  of  this  church 
there  stands  the  tower  of  a  wireless  station.  Its 
mate  is  at  Graceland  College,  in  Lamoni,  Iowa. 

THE    WIRELESS     MESSAGE 

Early  in  the  war  I  was  somewhat  interested  in  the 
work  of  the  wireless  students  at  Graceland  College. 
They  would  receive  messages  from  the  air — mes- 
sages from  San  Francisco,  New  York  City,  the 
American  Squadron  in  the  Atlantic.  They  even 
picked  up  messages  from  Germany.  Now  the  thing 
that  seemed  so  singular,  so  dramatic  to  me,  was 
that  these  messages  were  passing  constantly  through 
the  air  about  my  ears,  but  I  could  not  hear  them.  I 
could  not  detect  them.  I  could  not  perceive  them.  I 
could  not  apprehend  them.  I  knew  nothing  of  them 
excepting  as  I  believed  the  testimony  of  others,  and 
sometimes,  putting  the  matter  to  the  test,  sent  mes- 
sages and  received  an  intelligent  answer.  But  these 
men  were  almost  like  the  gods,  and  listened  to  the 
chatter  of  the  universe  that  was  unknown  to  me. 

It  is  quite  possible  that  at  this  very  moment  the 
air  of  this  place  is  thrilling  with  messages  from  the 
Peace  Conference.  We  do  not  know,  but  it  is  at 
least  within  the  range  of  possibility.  It  seems  to  me 
that  ought  to  make  us  a  little  cautious  how  we  say 
that  a  thing  cannot  be,  simply  because  it  does  not 
appeal  to  our  senses. 


278  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

I  believe  that  the  otherwise  stagnant  atmosphere 
of  this  old  world  is  constantly  thrilling  with  divine 
messages  from  on  high,  that  give  intelligence.  Once 
in  a  while  a  great  prophet,  who  is  in  touch,  in  com- 
munication with  God,  receives  a  great  message  for 
the  world  that  others  know  not  of;  and  constantly, 
if  we  will,  you  and  I,  who  do  not  profess  to  be  major 
prophets,  may  receive  spiritual  communications,  and 
do,  in  our  prayer  services  and  in  our  secret  prayers, 
when  we  come  in  touch  with  the  Spirit  of  God.  So 
that  we  may  say  we  have  meat  that  others  know 
not  of. 

SIX  HUNDRED  FOOLS 

This,  of  course,  seems  utterly  foolish  to  the  world. 
Shortly  after  the  General  Conference  at  this  place 
when  President  Frederick  M.  Smith  presented  the 
communication  naming  Brother  McGuire  to  be  the 
presiding  bishop,  a  Canadian  paper  appeared  with  an 
article  which  was  headed,  "Six  hundred  fools,"  and 
went  on  to  say  that  six  hundred  delegates  of  this 
organization  met  in  Independence  and  President 
Smith  presented  to  them  something  claiming  to  be  a 
revelation  from  God,  and  they  accepted  it  as  the 
word  of  God;  which  was  sufficient  to  give  them  the 
title  of  six  hundred  fools.  It  seems  to  me,  however, 
that  the  fool  is  the  one  who  refuses  to  recognize 
truth  simply  because  it  does  not  appeal  to  him,  or 
come  to  him  along  the  lines  he  has  marked  down,  and 
he  will  not  receive  it  along  other  lines. 

Jesus  said  to  the  Pharisees  when  he  was  here,  "Ye 


/  Have  Meat  that  Ye  Know  Not  of  279 

blind  and  deaf/'  Now  the  Pharisees,  each  one  of 
them,  probably  had  two  pretty  good  eyes.  Each  of 
them  doubtless  had  two  good  ears.  They  could  see 
what  they  wanted  to  see  and  hear  what  they  wanted 
to  hear;  but  so  far  as  Christ's  message  was  con- 
cerned, they  were  blind  and  deaf. 

Right  along  this  line  there  is  a  little  poem  I  have 
clipped,  entitled: 

BLIND 

"The  spring  blew  trumpets  of  color, 

Her  green  sang  in  my  brain, 
But  I  heard  a  blind  man  groping, 
Tap,  tap,  with  hi:j  cane. 

"I  pitied  him  in  his  blindness, 

But  can  I  boast  I  see? 
Perhaps  there  walks  a  spirit 
Close  by  who  pities  me. 

"A  spirit  that  sees  me  tapping 

The  five-sensed  cane  of  mind; 
Amid  such  unguessed  glories, 
That  I  am  worse  than  blind." 

It  was  Sir  Oliver  Lodge  who  said  that  "the  ways 
of  science  are  not  the  only  ways  to  discover  truth." 
The  ways  of  science  of  course  are  investigation,  dis- 
covery, and  verification.  Very  properly  so,  too.  It 
it  very  proper  that  science  should  confine  herself  to 
those  methods.  But  I  am  glad  that  there  is  one 
great  scientist  who  is  willing  to  admit,  and  does 
freely  admit,  that  these  are  not  the  only  ways  to  dis- 


280  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

cover  truth.  He  leaves  to  religion  the  possible  dis- 
covery of  truth  by  revelation.  So  that  Jesus  was  not 
necessarily  in  conflict  with  science  when  he  said  that 
he  was  enjoying  things  that  those  who  stood  by,  ob- 
servant with  their  eyes,  and  listening  with  their  ears, 
could  not  perceive. 

VOICES   OF  SOCRATES 

Profane  history,  I  believe,  presents  some  illustra- 
tions along  that  line.  Take  the  case  of  Socrates. 
Socrates  was  born  of  very  humble  parentage.  He 
was  exceedingly  poor  and  so  grotesque  in  appearance 
that  he  was  a  laughing  stock  in  the  community,  at 
times,  and  yet  he  achieved  such  distinction  as  a 
philosopher  that  it  is  said  now  that  Greek  history  is 
divided  into  two  periods — the  period  before  Socrates 
and  the  period  after  Socrates.  In  fact,  he  was  greater 
than  Greek  history  and  rises  up  like  a  mountain  peak, 
and  belongs  to  the  world.  Socrates  claimed,  all  his 
life  long  to  be  guided  by  inner  voices,  audible  to  him- 
self, but  not  audible  to  anyone  else.  He  yielded 
obedience  to  those  voices,  even  to  the  giving  up  of  his 
life  when  he  was  sentenced  to  death  and  the  privilege 
of  escape  was  offered  to  him. 

Modern  writers  have  tried  to  explain  the  voices  of 
Socrates  on  the  ground  that  he  was  an  epileptic. 
Anything  that  cannot  be  explained,  that  comes  from 
God,  some  people  try  to  push  aside  on  the  charge  of 
epilepsy.  Saint  Paul  was  supposed  to  be  an  epileptic. 
Joseph  Smith  had  been  declared  to  be  an  epileptic. 


/  Have  Meat  that  Ye  Know  Not  of  281 

What  a  pity  that  epilepsy  is  not  contagious!  We 
need  a  little  more  divine  or  sublime  insanity  along 
that  line. 

JOAN   OF  ARC 

There  was  the  famous  case  of  Joan  of  Arc,  a  girl 
born  of  a  peasant  family;  uneducated;  unable  even 
to  read  or  write,  who  received,  as  she  claimed,  com- 
munication from  the  angels.  At  the  time  France  had 
been  suffering  from  a  terrible  war  for  nearly  a  hun- 
dred years,  and  her  land  was  overrun  with  the  enemy, 
England,  now  her  friend.  This  girl  professed  to  be 
told  by  the  angels  to  present  herself  at  the  court, 
and  she  would  be  given  supreme  command  of  the 
armies  of  France,  and  the  Lord  would  lead  her  to 
victory. 

She  possessed  some  power  over  the  king,  then  un- 
crowned, so  that  she  was  actually  placed  in  supreme 
command  over  the  armies  of  France.  Mounted  on 
her  horse,  she  led  her  troops  from  one  victory  to  an- 
other until  in  a  few  short  weeks  she  was  able  to 
assist  in  the  crowning  of  her  king.  It  is  remarkable 
the  military  strategy  she  displayed  without  previous 
training.  We  do  not  need  to  say  from  what  source 
her  inspiration  came.  The  French  said  it  was  from 
God,  and  the  English  said  it  was  from  the  Devil,  and 
they  burned  her  at  the  stake ;  but  it  was  quite  evident 
that  she  did  receive  something  from  some  source  that 
others  knew  not  of.  Mark  Twain  truly  says  that  the 
world  has  never  explained  Joan  of  Arc. 

When  we  take  up  sacred  history  we  have  many 


282  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

instances :  Moses  watching  the  burning  bush ;  David 
singing  the  Twenty-third  Psalm;  Paul  on  the  road  to 
Damascus  perceiving  Christ,  and  finally  Jesus,  him- 
self, who  declared  that  he  was  receiving,  at  that 
time,  meat  that  others  knew  not  of. 

HIDDEN  MANNA 

There  is  a  statement  in  the  book  of  Revelation  to 
this  effect:  "To  him  that  overcometh  it  shall  be 
given  to  eat  of  the  hidden  manna."  We  may  think 
of  that  as  something  that  will  occur  in  the  far- 
distant  future,  when  those  who  have  overcome  all 
tribulations,  resisted  all  temptations,  shall  enter  into 
a  glorified  condition  and  be  given  to  eat  of  the  hidden 
manna.  That  may  be  true,  but  I  believe  that  the 
individual  who  is  not  overcoming  now,  probably 
never  will  overcome;  and  that  the  individual  who  is 
overcoming  now  is  receiving  his  portion  of  the  hid- 
den manna  every  day,  quite  in  harmony  with  the 
prayer  that  Jesus  offered,  "Give  us  this  day  our 
daily  bread."  I  do  not  think  he  had  in  mind  entirely 
the  loaf  of  barley  or  of  wheat,  though  he  may  have 
had  that  in  mind  also.  The  individual  who  is  over- 
coming now,  is  entitled  to  receive  the  hidden  manna 
that  will  sustain  him. 

Look  around  you  and  note  the  men  and  women  of 
the  church  who  are  good  men  and  women;  who  are 
living  their  religion ;  who  are  Godlike  to  this  extent 
that  they  are  the  same  yesterday,  and  to-day,  and 
to-morrow.  I  mean  by  that,  that  they  are  not  here 
to-day  and  gone  to-morrow ;  in  the  straight  and  nar- 


I  Have  Meat  that  Ye  Know  Not  of  283 

row  path  one  day,  and  wandering  in  by  and  forbidden 
paths  the  next ;  but  rather  pursue  a  straight  course, 
without  deviation  to  the  right  or  to  the  left.  Men 
whom  you  can  depend  on  and  you  know  where  they 
are — and  these  are  the  men  and  women  who  are 
overcoming  and  are  sustained  by  the  hidden  manna. 
They  have  meat  that  others  know  not  of,  in  common 
with  their  Lord  and  Master. 

I  mention  these  things  because  I  believe  the  Saints 
ought  to  enlarge  their  horizon,  and  not  give  their  at- 
tention exclusively  to  material  things,  but  let  their 
horizon  include  spiritual  things.  I  know  there  is 
danger  that  we  will  be  accused  of  being  idealists  and 
dreamers,  but  the  idealists  of  the  world  have  been 
the  ones  who  really  have  been  pioneers  in  advance- 
ment. 

You  know  that  the  king  told  Paul  that  he  was  mad. 
Paul  said,  Agrippa,  I  would  that  thou  wert  altogether 
like  me,  excepting  for  these  bonds.  If  there  had 
been  several  hundred  thousand  madmen  like  Paul, 
the  history  of  Christianity  would  have  been  different. 
Columbus  was  an  idealist.  He  dreamed  of  another 
world,  and  persisted  in  his  dreaming  in  spite  of  all 
obstacles — and  he  discovered  a  new  world.  Galileo, 
watching  the  chandelier  swinging  to  and  fro  in  the 
cathedral,  had  a  vision  of  worlds  revolving  on  their 
axis.  The  hard-hearted  churchmen  of  the  age  made 
him  get  down  on  his  knees  and  recant,  but  as  he 
arose  he  whispered  Jo  himself,  "It  does  move." 

John  Brown  was  an  idealist  who  dreamed  of  the 


284  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

overthrow  of  slavery  and  went  upon  what  seemed  to 
be  a  hair-brained  expedition.  He  gave  up  his  life, 
apparently  without  reason ;  but  in  a  very  short  time 
there  were  thousands  of  men  marching  and  singing, 
"John  Brown's  body  lies  moldering  in  the  grave,  but 
his  soul  goes  marching  on." 

We  have  an  ideal  also,  that  the  world  says  is  not 
practical,  and  that  is  the  ideal  of  Zion — something 
the  world  says  cannot  be  realized.  If  it  is  realized 
it  will  be  because  we  are  partaking  of  meat  that  the 
world  does  not  know  of.  It  is  true  that  Zion  does 
have  a  material  basis;  must  have  a  common  sense 
basis,  plenty  of  good,  hard,  common  sense.  But  we 
want,  also,  divine  direction,  divine  inspiration,  for 
otherwise  we  certainly  shall  be  overwhelmed  by  the 
problems  that  confront  us. 

PLEASING  GOD 

The  second  divison  of  the  subject  is  certainly  not 
less  important,  though  I  may  give  it  less  time.  Jesus 
said,  "My  meat  is  to  do  the  will  of  him  that  sent  me." 
From  this  I  draw  the  conclusion  that  it  is  not  our 
business  to  do  what  we  want  to  do.  It  is  our  business 
to  do  what  we  ought  to  do.  Jesus  inquired  the  mind 
of  God.  Then  he  said,  My  meat  is  to  do  the  will  of 
God.  Too  often  we  inquire  the  will  of  God.  We  say, 
Send  us  a  revelation ;  but  there  is  the  end  of  the  mat- 
ter. We  are  not  so  keen  to  do  the  will  of  God,  as  we 
were  to  learn  the  will  of  God.  So,  on  a  certain  oc- 
casion, in  speaking  to  a  certain  class  of  people,  Jesus 
will  say,  "Why  call  ye  me  Lord,  Lord,  and  do  not  the 


I  Have  Meat  that  Ye  Know  Not  of  285 

things  that  I  command  you  ?"  You  see  these  two  are 
intimately  associated :  First  to  learn  the  will  of  God 
by  revelation  or  otherwise ;  and  second,  to  do  the  will 
of  God. 

It  is  not  necessarily  our  province  to  do  what  others 
want  us  to  do,  or  what  their  will  is.  It  is  our  busi- 
ness to  do  that  which  pleases  God.  When  we  start 
out  with  the  idea  of  pleasing  others,  we  are  bound, 
sooner  or  later,  to  find  out  that  we  absolutely  can- 
not escape  the  condemnation  of  some  people.  The 
most  carefully  considered  action,  the  most  sincere 
step  that  we  may  take,  as  I  have  discovered  per- 
sonally, may  immediately  be  talked  about  by  some 
one  who  will  regard  it  as  absolutely  wrong.  So, 
whatever  course  we  take  we  are  liable  to  come  in 
for  condemnation.  It  reminds  me  of  a  little  verse, 
which  says, 

"Weep  and  you're  called  a  baby; 

Laugh  and  you're  called  a  fool; 
Yield,  and  you're  called  a  coward; 
Stand  fast  and  you're  called  a  mule." 

So  we  may  despair  of  pleasing  others;  at  least, 
of  pleasing  everybody  else.  Our  aim  should  be  to 
please  God,  and  then  we  can  leave  the  outcome  in 
his  hands.  "I  do  always  the  will  of  the  Father," 
Jesus  said.  "My  meat  is  to  do  the  will  of  him  that 
sent  me." 

THE  STORY  OF  A  MIRROR 

Jesus,  perhaps,  had  the  advantage  of  knowing  all 
the  time  what  the  will  of  the  Father  was.  We  are 


286  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

limited,  no  doubt,  but  you  know  Jesus  gave  the 
promise  that  his  Spirit  should  guide  us  into  all  truth. 
We  must  know  the  truth  first,  and  perceive  our  duty 
clearly  before  we  can  understand  it,  and  consequently 
before  we  can  do  it  properly.  I  assume  that  we  are 
altogether  in  a  great  study  class  in  the  church  trying 
to  find  out  the  truth.  But  there  is  one  thing  that 
grieves  me  sometimes,  and  that  is  that  when  one 
perceives  a  portion  of  the  truth,  from  his  standpoint, 
he  concludes  it  is  all  truth,  and  he  has  no  patience 
with  his  brother  who  perceives  it  from  a  different 
angle. 

That  reminds  me  of  the  old  story  of  the  Japanese 
mirror  that  you  may  have  heard  me  tell.  A  Japanese 
peasant  went  to  town  on  a  certain  occasion,  and  look- 
ing into  a  shop  window  saw  a  mirror.  It  was  the 
first  mirror  he  had  ever  seen,  and  when  he  looked 
into  that  mirror,  what  do  you  suppose  he  saw  ?  Why, 
the  very  picture  of  his  father,  as  he  remembered  him 
as  a  young  man.  He  thought  it  was  the  spirit  of  his 
father,  and  so  he  got  together  all  the  money  he  had 
and  bought  that  mirror  and  took  it  home.  He  car- 
ried it  into  the  attic  and  built  a  little  altar  to  put  the 
mirror  on.  Every  day  he  would  make  offerings  and 
pray  before  that  altar,  look  into  the  mirror,  and  the 
spirit  of  his  father  would  look  out  at  him. 

All  would  have  gone  well  excepting  that  this  man 
had  a  wife  who  was  curious,  as  women  sometimes 
are  (and  men  as  well) ,  and  she  began  to  wonder  why 
every  day  her  husband  went  up  into  the  attic,  and 


/  Have  Meat  that  Ye  Know  Not  of  287 

why  he  locked  the  door  when  he  came  down.  So  one 
day  when  her  husband  was  gone,  she  climbed  up  into 
the  attic,  found  the  mirror,  and  looked  into  it,  and 
what  do  you  suppose  she  saw?  A  young  woman,  and 
rather  a  good  looking  woman,  too,  she  thought. 

Ah,  she  knew  why  her  husband  went  into  the 
attic  every  day.  The  perfidious  wretch  went  up  there 
to  see  that  woman.  So  she  went  down  the  ladder, 
and  when  her  husband  came  home  there  was  trouble. 
He  insisted  he  saw  a  man  in  the  mirror,  and  he  told 
the  truth ;  but  she  said  the  thing  that  looked  out  at 
her  was  a  woman,  a  young  woman,  and  she  told  the 
truth.  Finally,  to  settle  the  controversy,  they  con- 
cluded to  send  for  an  old  woman  who  was  something 
of  a  sorceress,  and  so  they  brought  her  in.  She  was 
bent  and  crippled  with  age,  but  she  climbed  labo- 
riously up  the  ladder  and  was  gone  a  long  time.  When 
she  came  down  again  she  said,  "You  are  both  fools. 
It  is  an  old  woman  that  is  in  the  mirror."  Then  they 
had  a  worse  quarrel  than  before — all  three  of  them. 
The  remarkable  part  of  it  is,  she  also  told  the  truth. 
Each  one  told  the  truth  from  his  or  her  angle,  as 
they  saw  it,  and  from  their  viewpoint. 

Had  there  been  some  one  there  to  explain,  and 
had  they  exercised  a  little  patience  to  compare  their 
views  they  might  all  have  arrived  at  the  absolute 
truth,  whereas  each  one  had  but  relative  truth.  And 
so  sometimes  I  look  at  truth  from  my  standpoint,  and 
it  is  colored  by  my  personality,  by  my  prejudices.  I 
see  the  truth,  part  of  it ;  but  you  look  at  it  from  your 


288  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

standpoint  and  you  get  an  entirely  different  vision. 
The  only  trouble  is,  we  have  not  any  patience  with 
each  other.  We  begin  to  quarrel  and  contend,  but 
Jesus  said,  "For  this  cause  came  I  into  the  world,  to 
bear  witness  unto  the  truth."  His  Spirit  will  guide 
us  into  all  truth ;  but  in  the  midst  of  this  process,  as  a 
class  of  students  who  are  learning  at  the  divine  knee, 
under  the  direction  of  the  Spirit,  we  must  learn  in 
the  Spirit  of  the  Master  or  we  never  will  arrive  at 
the  truth.  We  must  have  charity.  We  must  have 
the  spirit  of  forbearance  as  well  as  that  of  investiga- 
tion. 

Then  the  burden  of  my  thought  this  morning  is, 
that  we  must  get  in  touch  with  God.  Be  in  com- 
munication with  him  as  Christ  was.  We  may  learn 
the  truth — our  duty — and  then  if  it  becomes  our 
will  to  do  the  will  of  God  and  finish  his  work,  we  may 
say  to  the  world  that  we  have  meat  that  others  know 
not  of. 


PREACHING  JESUS 

THE  great  lesson  of  the  Christmastide  is  the 
fact  that  Jesus  was  the  Son  of  God.  That  is 
the  underlying  fact  of  Christianity.  It  is  the 
very  rock  upon  which  our  faith  is  predicated  and 
upon  which  our  church  is  builded. 

It  is  the  mission  of  the  gospel  to  teach  men  this 
fact.  It  is  our  work  as  his  followers  to  help  men  to 
see  that  he  is  indeed  the  Christ.  But  how  shall  this 
be  done  ?  How  shall  we  preach  Christ  ? 

We  may  place  the  Bible  in  their  hands  and  they 
may  read  all  the  record  of  his  matchless  life ;  but  the 
infidel  does  that  and  so  does  the  Unitarian,  and 
neither  discerns  anything  but  the  record  of  a  good 
and  great  man. 

We  may  travel  to  the  Holy  Land  and  retrace  every 
step  that  our  Master  took,  thus  imbuing  our  minds 
with  the  spirit  of  the  past;  we  may  study  well  the 
history  of  our  Lord,  and  then  from  the  pulpit,  with 
all  the  eloquence  of  Savonarola  or  Paul,  preach  to 
the  world  the  fact  that  he  was  the  Son  of  God.  The 
crowds  may  listen  spellbound;  but  what  do  they 
hear  ?  The  history  of  a  man — nothing  more. 

How  shall  I  preach  Christ? 

In  desperation  I  may  invoke  the  aid  of  art.  I  pre- 
pare my  canvas  and  my  paints  and  bestow  upon  my 
work  the  best  labor  of  a  lifetime.  I  think  about  my 
Lord  by  day,  and  I  dream  of  him  by  night,  until  my 
10  289 


290  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

eyes  pierce  the  obscurity  and  I  see  the  lineaments  of 
his  face,  and  with  all  the  skill  of  Raphael  or  Hofmann 
I  faithfully  outline  my  ideal  upon  the  retentive  can- 
vas. 

Then  I  turn  to  the  world  and  say,  "Come  and  see 
the  picture  of  the  Son  of  God."  They  look,  and  what 
do  they  see?  The  picture  of  a  man!  It  is  useless! 

Let  us  go  back,  if  we  may,  to  the  days  of  Christ 
himself.  For  us  let  time  be  reversed.  Back  to  the 
days  when  America  was  born!  Back  to  the  days 
when  Britain  was  born!  Back  to  the  days  when 
Rome  fell !  Back  to  the  time  when  Christ  called  his 
twelve  apostles!  Let  us  seek  Jesus!  And  as  we 
enter  the  narrow  streets  of  Jerusalem,  and  thrill 
with  the  life  of  the  Holy  Land,  we  come  upon  the 
object  of  our  search.  It  is  ours  to  touch  his  hand,  to 
listen  to  his  voice.  Eagerly  we  turn  to  the  throngs 
of  bystanders,  and  in  the  language  of  John  cry,  "Be- 
hold the  Lamb  of  God  that  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the 
world." 

They  look  and  what  do  they  see?  They  listen, 
and  what  do  they  hear?  Having  eyes  they  see  not; 
having  ears  they  hear  not.  "Is  not  this  Jesus,  the 
son  of  Joseph?  His  father  and  mother  are  well 
known  to  us.  Why,  then,  say  that  he  is  the  Son  of 
God?" 

In  despair  we  cry  out,  "Lord,  if  they  are  to  see 
this  great  fact  you  must  reveal  it  to  them !  We  can- 
not." 

Ah!  there  is  the  secret  of  it  all.    For  the  Master 


Preaching  Jesus 


himself  said  that  flesh  and  blood  had  not  revealed 
that  fact  to  Peter  —  nor  indeed  could  it  do  so. 

Therein  is  shown  the  need  of  present  revelation. 
Without  a  constant  revelation  to  each  generation  new 
born  into  the  kingdom,  there  would  soon  be  a  church 
composed  of  members  who  would  be  ignorant  of  the 
great  fact  on  which  the  church  rests.  For  it  is  not 
a  fact  that  can  be  made  known  by  word  of  mouth 
alone,  or  by  written  word,  or  by  art  or  science.  "No 
man  can  say  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ  but  by  the 
Holy  Ghost." 

Therein  is  revealed  the  cooperation  between  man 
and  God.  It  has  pleased  God  to  save  the  world  by  the 
foolishness  of  preaching,  and  to  that  end  preachers 
are  sent;  yet  it  is  equally  true  that  no  man  can  dis- 
cern the  Son  of  God  excepting  as  divine  influences 
make  him  known. 

The  apostles  had  been  with  Christ.  They  could 
tell  of  his  life  and  teachings  down  to  the  minutest 
detail.  They  were  those  "who  from  the  beginning 
were  eye-witnesses"  ;  they  told  what  their  "eyes  had 
seen  and  what  their  hands  had  handled"  of  the  word 
of  life.  Yet  these  facts  did  not  qualify  them  to 
preach  Christ  to  men.  They  had  to  tarry  at  Jeru- 
salem until  they  were  endowed  with  power  from  on 
high,  so  that  when  they  preached  Christ  that  Spirit 
would  whisper  to  the  hearer,  "It  is  true,"  and  being 
powerfully  drawn  he  might  obey  and  be  born  again 
by  that  same  power  from  on  high. 

Let  those  who  preach  Christ  ever  bear  this  in 


292  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

mind.  The  Comforter  is  sent  to  testify  of  him,  and 
without  its  cooperation  we  are  commanded  that  we 
shall  not  teach — it  is  useless  and  even  dangerous  to 
attempt  to  portray  divinity  to  humanity  unless 
divinity  shall  aid  us. 


LOVE 

(Sermon  at  Lamoni,  Iowa,  1915.) 

M  THEME  is  compassed  in  a  single  word, 
i  word  of  only  four  letters.  This  word,  or 
its  equivalent,  is  as  old  as  creation.  Adam 
whispered  it  in  the  ears  of  Eve  as  they  walked  in  the 
lovely  lanes  of  Eden.  With  it  they  solaced  each  other 
when  they  were  driven  out  into  a  harsh  and  bitter 
world.  The  sons  of  Adam  still  delight  to  whisper 
this  word  into  the  ears  of  the  blushing  daughters  of 
Eve ;  and  speaking  it  and  hearing  it,  they  turn  their 
footsteps  back  towards  the  paradise  that  was  lost. 
If  we  ever  regain  that  paradise  it  will  be  because  we 
have  learned  the  full  import  of  that  word. 

This  word,  we  may  presume,  is  the  watchword  of 
the  angels  of  heaven  when  they  leave  the  courts  of 
glory  and  come  down  to  earth  to  minister  to  the  heirs 
of  salvation;  and  having  finished  their  work  of 
watching  over  the  cradles  of  little  babes,  guiding  the 
wandering  feet  of  children,  ministering  to  strong 
men  and  women  who  are  heartsick,  and  smoothing 
the  pillow  of  troubled  age,  when  they  return  again, 
I  imagine  that  the  austere  angel  who  stands  at  the 
pearly  gates,  halts  them  until  they  repeat  this  watch- 
word. 

They  do  not  forget  it.  If  they  were  to  forget  it, 
they  would  not  be  worthy  to  remain  in  heaven  as  the 

293 


294 The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

angels  of  God.    They  could  not  minister  on  earth  to 
the  heirs  of  salvation. 

CHRIST  IS  GOD'S  DECLARATION  OF  LOVE 

This  is  the  word  that  God  himself,  stooping  down 
from  on  high,  spoke  to  a  dying  world,  in  the  person  of 
Jesus  Christ;  for  Jesus  Christ  is  God's  declaration 
of  love  to  the  world.  "God  so  loved  the  world,"  we 
are  told  in  John  3 :  16,  "that  he  gave  his  only  be- 
gotten Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  in  him  should 
not  perish,  but  have  everlasting  life." 

The  theme,  then,  that  we  wish  to  consider  is  that 
of  "Love." 

I  call  your  attention  to  three  texts.  The  first  one 
is:  "Behold,  what  manner  of  love  the  Father  hath 
bestowed  upon  us,  that  we  should  be  called  the  sons 
of  God"  (1  John  3:1). 

The  second  is:  "We  love  him,  because  he  first 
loved  us  (1  John  4:  19). 

And  the  third  is :  "For  this  is  the  message  that  ye 
heard  from  the  beginning,  that  we  should  love  one 
another"  <1  John  3: 11). 

GOD    SO    LOVED    THE    WORLD 

Taking  up,  then,  the  first  division  of  the  theme,  the 
love  of  God  for  man:  Why  was  it  that  God  sent  his 
Son  into  the  world? 

He  was  not  moved  by  any  of  the  considerations 
that  commonly  sway  humanity.  He  did  not  have 
anything  to  gain.  His  glory  could  not  possibly  be  in- 
creased. It  was  already  infinite  and  ineffable. 


Love  295 

But  we  are  told  that  he  sent  his  Son  into  the  world 
because  he  so  loved  the  world.  Yes,  he  loved  us  be- 
fore we  loved  him.  We  are  told  that  "We  love  him, 
because  he  first  loved  us." 

We  have  had  some  discussion  about  the  atonement 
of  Jesus  Christ  and  the  place  of  his  death  in  that 
atonement.  I  do  not  intend  to  enter  upon  any  dis- 
cussion of  that  at  this  time,  but  we  will  all  agree  in 
this  thought,  that  the  death  and  sufferings  of  Jesus 
Christ  were  not  designed  to  bribe  or  to  propitiate  an 
angry  or  an  indifferent  God  and  win  his  favor  and 
approbation  for  man. 

Before  there  was  the  first  dimmest  stirring  of  an 
impulse  of  love  in  our  hearts  for  God,  God  loved  us. 
He  loved  the  world  before  his  Son  came  into  the 
world. 

BRIDGING    HELL    GATE 

What  place  does  this  have  in  the  economy  of  God  ? 
They  are  building  now  in  New  York  City  at  a  place 
called  Hell  Gate  (an  appropriate  name  for  our  illus- 
tration), a  great  steel  bridge,  and  they  are  building 
simultaneously  from  the  two  banks  of  the  stream. 
It  is  to  be  a  single  great  arch,  or  span.  By  and  by 
this  arch  will  meet  in  the  middle  of  the  span,  and  the 
bridge  will  be  complete. 

And  so,  when  the  love  of  man  for  God,  and  the 
love  of  God  for  man,  springing  from  earth  towards 
heaven,  and  from  heaven  towards  earth,  finally  meet, 
then  the  gap  is  bridged,  and  there  is  a  highway 


296  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

formed  by  which  we  can  approach  God.    That  is  the 
place  that  love  has  in  the  economy  of  God. 

IN  LIFE  OR  IN  DEATH 

What  evidence  have  we  of  God's  love?  We  have 
the  evidence  of  his  sacrifice  and  his  service. 

What  is  the  extent  of  this  love  ?    We  read : 

"For  I  am  persuaded,  that  neither  death,  nor  life, 
nor  angels,  nor  principalities,  nor  powers,  nor  things 
present,  nor  things  to  come,  nor  height,  nor  depth, 
nor  any  other  creature,  shall  be  able  to  separate  us 
from  the  love  of  God,  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus  our 
Lord."— Romans  8 :  38,  39. 

That  means,  if  it  means  anything,  that  the  love 
of  God  is  going  to  seek  after  every  individual  born 
into  the  world,  and  there  is  no  power  on  earth,  or 
under  the  earth,  there  is  no  other  creature  that  can 
overthrow  the  designs  of  God.  His  love  will  reach 
every  man  somewhere,  sometime. 

WHO    NEITHER    LOVE    NOR    ARE    LOVED 

I  heard  Billy  Sunday  say,  about  two  weeks  ago, 
that  those  people  who  say  there  is  probation  after 
death  are  all  liars.  But  a  greater  than  Billy  Sunday 
has  said  that  death  cannot  separate  us  from  the  love 
of  God.  The  gospel  is  to  every  creature. 

If  there  is  any  benighted  creature  in  any  dark 
corner  of  the  universe  whom  this  message  of  love  has 
failed  to  reach  in 'this  life,  it  will  reach  after  him 
until  it  finds  him,  somewhere,  sometime.  He  will  not 
be  given  up  until  he  rejects  that  message.  There  is 


Love  297 

only  one  thing  that  can  separate  us  from  the  love  of 
God — our  own  personal  will. 

And  finally  when  that  love  reaches  that  individual, 
if  he  shall  then  fling  it  away  willfully,  after  tasting 
it,  then,  and  only  then  will  he  be  sent  down  to  dwell 
with  the  "sons  of  perdition,"  who  neither  love  nor 
are  loved — and  that  is  hell. 

LOVE  IN   THE  PRESENT   TENSE 

As  Latter  Day  Saints,  we  prefer  to  think  of  God's 
love  in  the  present  tense. 

We  read  that  God  used  to  give  the  people  certain 
blessings,  and  we  are  told  that  certain  signs  shall 
follow,  and  that  the  manifestations  of  the  Spirit 
are  given  to  every  man;  but  the  world  tells  us  that 
these  things  are  not  for  us.  What  is  the  matter? 
Is  God  a  respecter  of  persons? 

He  always  connected  his  commandments  to  serve 
him  with  his  promises  of  blessing.  If  the  promises 
of  blessing  are  not  good  any  longer,  then  the  com- 
mandments to  serve  him  are  no  longer  binding. 

THE    SHADOW  OF  A  LOAF 

Two  travelers  came  to  an  inn  and  put  up  for  the 
night.  One  of  them  became  very  sick  and  could  eat 
neither  supper  nor  breakfast ;  but  in  the  morning  the 
inkeeper  insisted  that  he  should  pay  for  both  of  the 
meals.  Finally  a  third  man  appeared,  and  all  agreed 
to  leave  the  dispute  to  his  judgment  to  decide. 

He  said  to  the  man  who  was  sick,  "Give  me  two 
pieces  of  silver."  He  was  given  the  pieces  of  silver, 


298 The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

and  then  he  rattled  them  by  the  ear  of  the  inkeeper 
and  said :  "This  man  got  only  the  smell  of  your  meat ; 
you  get  only  the  jingle  of  his  money." 

If  we  get  only  the  smell  of  the  meat  that  our  older 
brothers  ate,  then  God  can  justly  claim  only  the 
jingle  of  our  money  in  the  way  of  service — and  that, 
by  the  way,  is  about  all  the  world  is  giving  him. 

But  the  matter  is  reversed.  The  world  is  only  will- 
ing to  give  God  the  jingle  of  its  money,  and  hence  the 
world  gets  only  the  smell  of  the  meat  that  Peter  ate, 
the  shadow  of  the  bread  of  life  on  which  Paul  feasted. 

God  is  willing  to  bless  now  as  much  as  in  the  past. 

HARD-HEADED    AND    SOFT-HEARTED    SERVICE 

Taking  up  the  second  division  of  the  text,  our  love 
for  God :  We  are  commanded  in  Mark  12 :  30,  that  we 
shall  love  God  with  all  our  heart,  and  with  all  our 
mind,  with  all  our  soul,  and  with  all  our  strength. 

The  heart  is  the  seat  of  the  emotions,  so  our  re- 
ligion ought  to  be  emotional.  The  brain  is  the  seat 
of  intelligence,  so  our  service  should  be  intelligent, 
rational.  We  are  to  love  him  with  our  heart,  and 
with  our  mind ;  so  our  religion  and  our  service  ought 
to  be  intelligent  as  well  as  emotional. 

And  finally,  we  are  told  that  we  should  love  him 
with  all  our  soul.  The  soul,  we  are  told  in  the  Book 
of  Covenants,  is  the  body  and 'the  spirit,  the  whole 
man.  There  is  no  power  or  quality,  no  part  of  us 
that  should  not  be  enlisted  in  God's  service,  domi- 
nated by  love. 

Who  is  it  that  loves  God  ?    In  John  14 :  21  we  are 


Love  299 

told,  "He  that  hath  my  commandments,  and  keepeth 
them,  he  it  is  that  loveth  me/' 

We  have  here  the  test  of  our  love  for  God;  that 
is,  that  we  shall  have  his  commandments,  and  that 
we  shall  keep  them.  We  should  manifest  our  love 
by  service  and  by  obedience. 

LOVE    TRANSLATED    INTO    TERMS     OF    SERVICE 

I  will  not,  however,  dwell  long  upon  that  part,  but 
pass  to  the  third  division:  The  love  of  man  for  his 
fellow  men. 

John  says,  in  substance,  How  can  a  man  love  God 
whom  he  hath  not  seen,  if  he  does  not  love  his 
brother,  whom  he  hath  seen.  In  other  words,  if  we 
love  God  we  will  manifest  that  love  in  service  for  our 
fellow  men. 

We  are  told  in  Doctrine  and  Covenants  42 :  8 : 

"If  thou  lovest  me,  thou  shalt  serve  me  and  keep  all 
my  commandments.  And,  behold,  thou  wilt  remem- 
ber the  poor,  and  consecrate  of  thy  properties  for 
their  support,  that  which  thou  hast  to  impart  unto 
them,  with  a  covenant  and  a  deed  which  cannot  be 
broken;  and  inasmuch  as  ye  impart  of  your  sub- 
stance unto  the  poor,  ye  will  do  it  unto  me." 

The  thought  is  that  if  we  love  God  we  will  love  our 
fellow  men.  And  if  we  love  our  fellow  men  we  will 
give  of  our  surplus  properties  for  their  support  when 
they  are  poor  and  in  need. 

The  same  idea  is  presented  in  James  the  second 
chapter : 

"If  a  brother  or  sister  be  naked,  and  destitute  01 


300  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

daily  food,  and  one  of  you  say  unto  them,  Depart  in 
peace,  be  ye  warmed  and  filled;  notwithstanding  ye 
give  them  not  those  things  which  are  needful  to  the 
body;  what  doth  it  profit?" 

And  he  goes  on  to  tell  us  that  kind  of  religion,  like 
faith  without  works,  is  dead. 

And  in  1  John  3 :  17 :  "But  whoso  hath  this  world's 
goods,  and  seeth  his  brother  have  need,  and  shutteth 
up  his  bowels  of  compassion  from  him,  how  dwelleth 
the  love  of  God  in  him?" 

The  answer  is,  It  does  not  dwell  there  at  all. 

Our  love  of  our  fellow  man  will  be  manifested  in 
our  service  to  him,  and  it  will  take  not  only  a 
spiritual,  but  a  material  or  temporal  turn.  Without 
this  evidence  we  cannot  demonstrate  that  we  do 
really  and  truly  love  God. 

One  thing  that  we  as  a  people  must  cast  out  of  our 
lives  is  selfishness,  the  very  reverse  of  this  love  of 
God.  Selfishness  is  the  thing  that  hinders  our 
progress.  He  who  labors  in  Zion  for  money,  accord- 
ing to  the  divine  statement,  shall  perish.  But  it 
seems  that  on  every  turn  we  are  hindered  by  this 
selfishness  that  occupies  our  hearts.  How  shall  we 
get  rid  of  it? 

I  think  Tennyson  perceived  the  truth  when  he 
said: 

"Love  took  up  the  harp  of  life,  and  smote  on  all  the  chords 

with  might; 

Smote  the  chord  of  self,  that,  trembling,  passed  in  music 
out  of  sight." 


Love  301 

This  hateful  love  of  self,  when  it  is  touched  by  the 
divine  love  of  God,  passes  in  music  out  of  sight. 

TWO  JUDEAN  BROTHERS 

According  to  an  old  tradition,  two  brothers  lived 
in  Judea  on  adjoining  farms.  One  of  them  was 
single,  and  lived  alone;  the  other  had  a  wife  and 
many  children.  One  night  during  the  harvest  season 
the  man  who  was  single  said,  "My  brother  has  many 
mouths  to  feed.  To-night,  while  it  is  dark,  I  will 
carry  some  of  my  sheaves  over  and  set  them  in  his 
field,  and  in  the  morning  he  will  rejoice  to  see  his 
plentiful  harvest." 

And  the  same  night  the  other  brother  said,  "My 
brother  is  sad  and  lonely,  while  I  have  many  to  cheer 
me.  To-night  I  will  carry  some  of  my  sheaves  over 
the  line  and  set  them  in  his  field,  and  in  the  morning 
his  heart  will  be  made  glad  to  see  his  bountiful 
harvest." 

So  each  carried  out  his  plan  for  two  nights  in  suc- 
cession. But  on  the  third  night  the  moon  came  out 
and  they  came  face  to  face.  Tradition  says  that  on 
that  spot  the  temple  at  Jerusalem  was  built,  because 
there  earth  came  nearest  heaven. 

When  we  get  the  fullness  of  that  spirit,  and  each 
seeks  his  brother's  good,  then  we  can  build  the 
temple  of  God,  for  then  earth  will  come  near  to 
heaven  and  heaven  near  to  earth,  and  Jesus  will  be 
ready  to  come  and  take  up  his  abode  among  men. 


THE   TWENTY-THIRD   PSALM- 
THE   SHEPHERD'S   SONG 

r  I  "lHE  twenty-third  psalm  is  recognized  as  one  of 
the  masterpieces  of  literature.  Its  beauty  has 
won  the  admiration  of  the  irreligious.  Those 
of  a  religious  inclination  have  loved  it  because  it  ex- 
pressed in  the  finest  possible  manner  sentiments  that 
they  have  felt  but  could  not  express. 

The  twenty-third  psalm  is  a  triumph.  For  three 
thousand  years'  it  has  stood  as  a  witness  that  sim- 
plicity is  the  best  expression  of  greatness.  How 
simple  its  imagery — a  stream  of  water,  green  fields, 
a  shepherd,  a  flock  of  sheep.  How  simple  the  words, 
as  translated,  mostly  one  and  two  syllable  words. 
Common  words.  Yes,  common  words.  Who  can  dis- 
pense with  the  common  things  ?  As  one  old  violinist 
expressed  it  in  his  homely  way,  "You  may  buy  a 
fifty-dollar  violin ;  but  you  can't  make  music  without 
the  aid  of  a  five-cent  lump  of  rosin." 

The  twenty-third  psalm  is  a  triumph.  Almost  any- 
one can  take  an  unimportant  thought  and  clothe  it 
in  big  words  so  that  no  one  can  understand  it.  That 
is  easy.  To  take  a  thought  that  is  profound,  funda- 
mental, and  explain  it  so  simply  that  all  may  under- 
stand, is  a  triumph.  The  twenty-third  psalm  con- 
tains elemental  thoughts.  It  deals  with  life,  death, 
love,  enmity,  and  above  all  with  faith,  in  an  arrange- 

302 


The  Twenty-third  Psalm  303 

ment  of  something  like  one  hundred  and  seventeen 
words  that  anyone  can  understand  and  no  one  can 
excel. 

The  man  or  woman  who  imitates  this  psalm  in 
his  life  and  makes  that  life  a  simple  and  humble  in- 
terpretation of  great  truths  will  be  the  true  and  suc- 
cessful messenger  of  the  covenant.  Simplicity  of 
dress,  simplicity  of  conversation  and  deportment, 
are  all  consistent  with  true  greatness;  in  fact,  are 
inseparable  from  true  greatness. 

The  twenty-third  psalm  breathes  sincerity.  David 
meant  what  he  wrote.  Otherwise  he  could  not  have 
written  the  twenty-third  psalm.  He  might  have 
written  a  pretentious  poem,  ornate  with  sounding 
phrases,  but  a  minor  poem.  To  be  sincere  and  simple 
is  to  be  Godlike.  David  felt  what  he  wrote  as  plainly 
as  one  feels  hunger,  cold,  love,  repose;  and  so  his 
psalm  goes  home  to  the  hearts  of  men  and  women. 

"The  Lord  is  my  shepherd;  I  shall  not  want."  The 
man  who  can  say  that  and  say  it  truthfully  is  in- 
deed fortunate.  In  this  age  of  uncertainty  and  doubt, 
when  many  conflicting  claims  are  urged  in  the  name 
of  religion,  and  when  thousands  have  abandoned  re- 
ligion and  have  written  as  the  chief  articles  in  their 
confession  the  negative  proposition,  "I  do  not  know," 
it  is  a  wonderful  thing  to  be  able  to  say,  "The  Lord  is 
my  shepherd."  It  may  be  easy  to  say,  as  a  mere 
matter  of  articulation,  but  let  us  not  deceive  our- 
selves ;  to  say  it  truly  one  must  not  only  acknowledge 


304  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

the  leadership  of  Christ,  but  indeed  be  really  follow- 
ing him. 

A  great  many  people  acknowledge  Christ,  in  a  way. 
Spiritualism  and  every  other  ism  tries  to  hide  be- 
hind him.  .  "Yes,"  they  say,  "Christ  was  a  spiritual- 
ist. Christ  was  the  greatest  medium  that  ever 
lived."  And  so  the  argument  is,  "Christ  was  like 
me,"  which  is  vastly  different  from  saying,  "I  am 
trying  to  be  like  Christ." 

To  be  able  to  say,  "The  Lord  is  my  shepherd," 
argues  not  only  a  certain  amount  of  obedient 
righteousness,  but  also  a  certain  communication 
with  God.  Yes,  we  can  base  our  argument  for  con- 
tinued revelation  even  on  the  opening  line  of  the 
twenty-third  psalm,  the  classic  that  has  cheered 
multitudes  of  orthodox  Christians.  There  is  only 
one  way  for  any  man  to  know  that  Christ  is  his 
personal  shepherd.  He  cannot  know  that  fact  by 
reading  it  in  the  Bible,  because  it  is  not  stated  any- 
where in  the  Bible.  He  cannot  know  it  by  reading 
that  Christ  was  the  shepherd  of  David  or  of  Paul. 
He  can  only  know  it  when,  like  David  and  Paul,, .he 
establishes  personal  communication  with  the  great 
Shepherd. 

"He  calleth  his  own  sheep  by  name,  and  leadeth 
them  out.  And  when  he  putteth  forth  his  own  sheep, 
he  goeth  before  them,  and  the  sheep  follow  him :  for 
they  know  his  voice.  And  a  stranger  they  will  not 
follow."— John  10:3,  5. 

To  argue  that  this  is  not  an  age  of  revelation  and 


The  Twenty-third  Psalm  305 

that  communication  between  God  and  man  has 
ceased,  is  folly.  If  we  have  no  communication  with 
our  heavenly  Leader,  then  we  are  indeed  left  with 
earthly  leaders  who  are  no  better  than  we — blind 
leaders  of  a  blind  people.  Yet,  strangely  enough, 
such  a  proposition  has  been  urged  ever  since  the  day 
when  Joseph  Smith  first  announced  that  he  had  seen 
a  vision.  It  is  merely  an  argument  of  convenience, 
urged  because  no  other  comes  to  hand;  and  we  can 
afford  to  ignore  it  because  the  men  who  urge  it  most 
strenuously  themselves  deny  it  at  every  popular  re- 
vival. 

"He  maketh  me  to  lie  down  in  green  pastures:  he 
leadeth  me  beside  the  still  ivaters."  This  might  not 
mean  so  much  in  a  land  where  all  fields  are  green  and 
where  water  is  so  common  that  though  indispensable 
to  human  life  it  is  described  as  "having  no  economic 
value."  But  in  the  land  where  David  dwelt  were 
many  sandy  wastes,  streams  were  infrequent,  and 
the  words  water  and  green  fields  conveyed  more  than 
mere  poetic  pleasure. 

As  a  shepherd  lad,  David  had  often  led  his  sheep 
along  the  dusty  highway  and  over  barren  plains,  hot 
sand  under  foot,  hot  sun  overhead,  hot  wind  on  the 
cheek,  until  at  last  they  came  down  into  the  feeding 
places,  cool  green  fields  beside  the  still  waters. 

When  he  became  the  sweet  singer  of  Israel,  he  re- 
membered that  scene.  He  made  it  a  part  of  his  great 
psalm.  He  recognized  that  even  as  he  had  been  a 


306 The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

shepherd  and  had  led  his  sheep,  so  Christ  was  a 
shepherd  and  was  leading  him. 

The  individual  who  has  journeyed  even  a  short 
distance  in  this  old  world  begins  to  appreciate  what 
it  means  to  bear  the  "heat  and  burden  of  the  day." 
Sorrow,  sickness,  poverty,  loss  of  loved  ones,  the  un- 
faithfulness of  friends,  one  or  all  of  these  will  find 
him  out,  whatever  his  station,  and  will  compel  him  to 
seek  consolation  somewhere.  Happy  is  the  man  who 
finds  his  way  to  the  green  pastures  and  the  still 
waters  of  God's  love. 

"He  restoreth  my  soul."  The  Book  of  Doctrine  and 
Covenants  tells  us,  "The  spirit  and  the  body  is  the 
soul  of  man.  And  the  resurrection  from  the  dead 
is  the  redemption  of  the  soul ;  and  the  redemption  of 
the  soul  is  through  him  who  quickeneth  all  things." 
In  the  light  of  this  definition  of  the  human  soul,  a 
true  one,  we  believe,  we  see  that  the  restoration  of 
the  soul  means  the  conquering  of  death  and  sin  and 
the  reuniting  of  body  and  spirit  in  a  condition  of 
purity  and  perfection. 

"He  leadeth  me  in  paths  of  righteousness  for  his 
name's  sake."  The  Saints  of  God  are  bought  with  a 
price.  They  are  no  longer  free  to  do  whatever  ex- 
travagant fancy  may  urge.  Their  actions  reflect 
credit  or  discredit  upon  their  Master  and  upon  the 
cause  for  which  he  died.  It  is  their  duty  to  walk  in 
paths  of  righteousness  "for  his  name's  sake."  They 
cannot  go  with  the  world  and  do  as  the  world  does. 
To  be  correct  in  doctrine  and  dogmas  is  not  enough. 


The  Twenty-third  Psalm  307 

They  must  cleave  to  that  which  is  good  and  eschew 
that  which  is  evil,  "for  his  name's  sake,"  if  for  no 
other  reason. 

When  we  reach  the  point  where  we  will  stop  to 
consider  the  inevitable  results  of  certain  lines  of  con- 
duct as  affecting  the  work  in  general,  the  church  will 
begin  to  arise  and  shine.  When  the  world  sends  us 
a  gilded  invitation  to  attend  its  continuous  vaude- 
ville, let  us  write  across  the  face  of  that  invitation 
the  third  verse  of  the  twenty-third  psalm,  and  say 
no,  "for  his  name's  sake." 

11  Yea,  though  I  walk  through  the  valley  of  the 
shadow  of  death,  I  will  fear  no  evil:  for  thou  art 
with  me ;  thy  rod  and  thy  staff  they  comfort  me."  It 
is  easy  to  se.e  where  David  got  that  figure  of  speech 
— "The  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death."  As  one  ap- 
proaches the  mountains  he  crosses  sun-kissed  plains, 
but  when  he  enters  the  canyon,  where  granite  walls 
loom  up  on  either  side,  he  enters  the  chill  and  shadow 
of  another  world.  Yet,  if  he  persists  on  up  the  val- 
ley, he  at  last  comes  out  upon  the  heights  where  the 
sun  is  still  shining,  shining  with  a  beauty  not  before 
realized.  Wonderful  the  panorama  that  is  then  un- 
folded to  his  vision ! 

The  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death  lies  before  us 
all.  The  chill  and  gloom  that  is  there  felt  by  the 
bravest  explorer  has  given  death  his  title,  "The  king 
of  terrors."  Yet  David  said  that  he  would  fear  no 
evil.  Why?  Because  the  Lord  would  be  with  him; 


308  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

and  because  he  knew  that  beyond  that  valley  of  the 
shadow  the  sun  was  still  shining. 

"Thy  rod  and  thy  staff  they  comfort  me."  Some- 
times an  obscure  expression  is  understood  when  we 
know  the  customs  surrounding  the  author  during  his 
youth.  Apostle  Paul  M.  Hanson  gave  an  explanation 
of  this  phrase  gleaned  from  his  travels  in  the  Holy 
Land.  He  was  told  that  it  is  the  custom  of  the 
shepherds  on  dark  and  stormy  nights  to  precede 
their  flocks,  and  as  they  go  to  rap  with  their  staffs 
upon  the  rocks  and  bowlders;  the  sheep  hear  and 
are  comforted  as  they  follow  the  unseen  shepherd 
home  to  the  fold. 

"Thou  preparest  a  table  before  me  in  the  presence 
of  mine  enemies :  Thou  anointest  my  head  with  oil ; 
my  cup  runneth  over."  It  seems  strange  that  a  fol- 
lower of  Christ  should  have  enemies.  Yet  such  is 
frequently  the  case.  The  lion's  den,  the  fiery  furnace, 
dungeons,  the  scourge,  the  cross — with  these  argu- 
ments an  offended  world  has  reasoned  with  men 
whose  pious  lives  have  been  a  rebuke  more  scathing 
than  any  denunciation.  The  day  of  such  persecution 
is  not  past.  Husbands  who  are  otherwise  kind  still 
make  life  a  burden  for  wives  whose  only  offense  is 
that  they  wish  to  live  the  life  of  a  consistent  church 
member.  Young  men  and  women  are  still  disin- 
herited by  parents  and  disowned  by  associates  be- 
cause in  the  day  of  choosing  they  have  chosen  the 
right  and  because  that  right  came  under  the  banner 
of  the  restored  gospel. 


The  Twenty-third  Psalm  309 

When  the  young  man  through  whom  that  gospel 
was  restored  went  out  in  the  woods  to  pray  on  that 
spring  morning,  the  only  thing  in  the  world  that  he 
wanted  to  know  was  what  he  ought  to  do.  God  told 
him  what  to  do  and  he  did  it.  For  that  he  was  hated. 
The  thread  of  hatred  that  runs  through  the  history 
shows  red  at  Carthage,  Illinois,  as  plainly  as  it  did  in 
Jerusalem  or  in  Ephesus.  Yet,  paralleling  it,  runs 
the  white  thread  of  God's  love.  "Thou  preparest  a 
table  before  me  in  the  presence  of  mine  enemies." 
Have  not  the  individual  Saints  tested  that  promise, 
at  Kirtland,  in  Missouri,  at  Nauvoo,  and  found  it 
true  ?  Immortal  psalm !  Unfailing  promises ! 

"Thou  anointest  my  head  with  oil;  my  cup  runneth 
over."  This  is  an  expression  of  the  unstinted  beauty 
of  God.  We  serve  a  generous  God.  Christ,  our  elder 
brother,  is  an  advocate  of  the  idea  of  giving  good 
measure,  pressed  down  and  running  over. 

"Surely  goodness  and  mercy  shall  follow  me  all  the 
days  of  my  life :  and  I  will  dwell  in  the  house  of  the 
Lord  forever."  How  proud  men  are  to  build  and 
beautify  a  house  here  on  earth !  The  poor  man  saves 
and  economizes  and  never  quite  gives  up  the  idea  of 
owning  a  little  home  of  his  own.  He  dies  in  a  rented 
house,  and  some  one  has  cheated  him  out  of  his  birth- 
right. The  rich  man  schemes  and  speculates,  beats 
close  to  the  lee  shore  of  the  law,  that  he  may  build 
a  mansion.  All  that  money  and  power  can  com- 
mand and  art  and  skill  supply  goes  into  a  marble 
pile  of  faultless  design  and  appointment. 


310  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

But  while  the  mills  of  finance  are  grinding  out 
the  dollars  and  the  masons  are  building  them  into 
walls  and  the  sculptors  chiseling  them  into  statuary 
and  the  landscape  gardener  transmuting  them  into 
lawns  and  parks,  the  sun  rises  and  sets,  time  moves 
regularly  on,  and  about  the  time  the  grand  ensemble 
is  nicely  arranged,  the  proud  owner  is  filed  away  in 
the  family  vault,  where  the  .quarters  are  close  and 
the  atmosphere  depressing,  yet  where  none  complain. 

Why  give  so  much  attention  to  our  temporary 
home?  Why  give  so  little  attention  to  our  eternal 
home  ?  If  all  would  plan  to  be  associates  in  the  house 
of  the  Lord  in  the  life  to  come,  we  might  be  able  to 
strike  a  balance  between  the  palace  and  the  tenement 
here  in  this  life.  So  far  as  the  future  is  concerned, 
we  are  assured  that  in  our  Father's  house  there  are 
many  mansions. 

The  twenty-third  psalm  deals  with  affairs  in  this 
life,  with  affairs  in  the  world  to  come ;  and  with  the 
much  dreaded  passage  from  the  one  to  the  other.  It 
is  essentially  a  message  of  comfort,  and  its  keynote 
is  trust.  It  defends  its  own  claim  to  immortality. 
The  Jews  carried  it  with  them  into  Babylon.  The 
ten  tribes  took  it  with  them  into  their  captivity. 
Probably  Lehi  brought  it  with  him  to  the  promised 
land.  Our  Lord  heard  it  repeated  when  he  was  a  lad. 
Now  it  comes  to  us,  after  long  centuries,  "borne  on 
the  wings  of  a  hundred  translations,"  venerable  with 
age,  yet  clothed  in  immortal  youth. 


MUSIC   AS    THE    HANDMAIDEN    OF 
RELIGION 

(Address  delivered  at  the  Stone  Church,  Independence,  Mis- 
souri, June  27,  1920,  during  the  Musical  Festival,  held  under 
the  auspices  of  the  Department  of  Music.) 

THE  theme  that  I  have  selected  for  the  morn- 
ing's address  is,  "Music  the  handmaiden  of  re- 
ligion." It  might  be  well  for  us  briefly  to  re- 
view the  historic  connection  of  music  with  religion. 

One  writer  on  the  subject,  that  I  have  read  after, 
says  that  "among  all  people  music  first  originated 
in  religious  service."  If  that  be  true,  it  means,  in 
other  words,  that  among  all  people  music  first 
originated  in  man's  effort  to  express  his  religious 
emotions  and  convictions,  and  would  justify  the 
theme  I  have  selected,  music  as  the  handmaiden  of 
religion. 

Filmore,  in  his  Lessons  on  Musical  History  says, 
"In  all  ancient  nations  music  was  believed  to  be  of 
divine  origin,"  and  Tapper,  in  his  Essentials  of 
Musical  History  says,  concerning  the  Hebrews,  "Both 
Hebrew  poetry  and  music  seem  to  have  served  from 
the  beginning  no  other  purpose  whatever  than  to 
extol  Jehovah  and  proclaim  and  emphasize  divine 
ideals  and  ideas." 

We  are  particularly  interested  in  Hebrew  history 
because,  as  Christians,  we  inherit  from  Judah;  and 

311 


312  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

it  is  equally  true,  probably,  that  in  the  early  Chris- 
tian church  music  served  no  other  purpose  whatever 
than  to  extol  the  name  of  Jehovah,  and  to  proclaim 
divine  ideals  and  ideas. 

Of  course  in  modern  Christianity  music  has  come 
to  serve  many  social  functions;  also  military  func- 
tions, and  it  is  probably  true  that  a  great  many 
modern  Christians  are  more  familiar  with  the  music 
of  the  dance  hall  and  theater  than  the  music  of  the 
church. 

ORIGIN    OF    MUSICAL    INSTRUMENTS 

The  origin  of  musical  instruments  was  prior  to 
authentic  history.  We  do  not  know  whether  Adam 
and  Eve  had  any  music  in  the  home.  If  not,  that  may 
account  for  the  trouble  they  had  with  Cain.  It  is 
hard  to  think  of  them  raising  their  children  without 
at  least  a  jew's-harp,  or  its  equivalent.  But  it  is  a 
fact  that  as  far  back  as  the  fourth  chapter  of  Genesis 
the  statement  is  made  of  Tubal-cain  that  he  was  the 
"father"  or  teacher  of  all  those  who  played  upon  the 
harp  and  organ.  He  was  about  the  seventh  or  eighth 
from  Adam,  so  thus  early  in  their  history  they  had 
developed  two  very  distinct  types  of  musical  instru- 
ments. 

It  is  thought  that  instruments  of  percussion  were 
first  invented,  beginning,  perhaps,  with  the  effort  of 
some  ambitious  drum  major,  who  pounded  on  a  hol- 
low log  with  a  club.  From  this  evolved  the  great 
family  of  drums,  bells,  cymbals,  and  other  instru- 
ments of  percussion. 


Music  the  Handmaiden  of  Religion  313 

The  wind  instruments  were  next  invented,  be- 
ginning with  very  simple  forms,  a  flute  with  a  single 
note,  or  a  whistle,  or  something  of  that  kind,  and 
from  that  humble  beginning  was  evolved  the  many 
wind  instruments  that  we  have,  up  to  the  great  pipe 
organ,  king  of  them  all.  So  that  the  shepherd  lad 
who  played  upon  a  pipe  of  oat  straw,  or  the  pandean 
pipes,  had  a  potential  cathedral  pipe  organ  in  his 
hand.  Of  course,  he  didn't  know  it.  He  was  a 
pioneer  experimenter,  and  many  had  to  follow  after 
him. 

Then  came  the  stringed  instruments,  beginning, 
perhaps,  with  an  instrument  of  a  single  string,  and 
suggested  by  the  twanging  of  a  bowstring.  That 
would  be  my  guess,  and  the  theory  of  evolution  being 
a  series  of  guesses,  I  guess  that  my  guess  is  as  good 
as  anybody's  guess.  From  that  beginning  was  evolved 
all  the  various  stringed  instruments,  including  that 
prince  of  them  all,  the  violin,  whose  beautiful  music 
we  have  just  listened  to.  Finally,  in  our  day  we  have 
invented  the  most  singular  instrument  of  all,  the 
mechanical  mocking  bird  of  the  musical  world — the 
phonograph.  I  sometimes  think  it  must  have  been  a 
severe  jolt  to  Father  Time  when  the  phonograph 
was  invented.  Singers  sometimes  sing  to  kill  time, 
and  time  then  kills  the  singer,  and  that  used  to  end 
it.  When  Father  Time  got  tired  of  the  croaking  of 
any  particular  musician,  he  could  finish  him  off  and 
that  was  the  end  of  the  story ;  but  now  we  can  wind 
up  a  man's  voice  on  a  spool  and  unwind  it  long  after 
he  is  dead. 


314  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

Caruso,  I  suppose,  will  sing  just  as  sweetly  twenty 
years  after  he  is  dead.  Harry  Lauder  will  laugh  just 
as  infectiously  the  day  after  his  funeral  as  he  does 
to-day.  But,  of  course,  if  that  were  the  only  kind  of 
immortality,  consisting  of  a  series  of  indentations  in 
wax,  it  would  be  a  poor  kind  of  immortality. 

The  point  I  am  working  up  to  is  this,  that  all  these 
instruments  have  been  used  in  religious  services :  and 
all  of  them,  moreover,  have  been  used  in  conjunction 
with  the  human  voice,  which  is  the  first  great 
musical  instrument,  in  the  service  of  God.  So  we 
are  justified  in  concluding  that  music  is  indeed  the 
handmaiden  of  religion. 

THE   DEVIL    STOLE    MUSIC 

It  is  true  that  the  Devil  took  over  to  his  own  use 
musical  service,  to  a  large  extent.  We  ought  not  to 
hold  that  against  music,  however,  because  we  must 
remember  that  he  took  over  the  whole  thing, 
monasteries,  churches,  ministers,  ritual — the  whole 
business — not  simply  music.  Yet  there  was  in 
Christendom  a  rather  natural  reaction  on  that  ac- 
count, and  the  early  Christians  would  not  tolerate 
any  kind  of  musical  instrument,  because  they  had 
seen  how  in  Greece,  where  they  had  a  large  follow- 
ing, all  these  instruments  were  prostituted  to  the 
service  of  Bacchus  and  Venus  in  all  kinds  of  immoral 
rites.  They  went  to  the  extreme  of  rebellion  against 
that  prostitution,  and  it  was  a  long  time  before  they 
would  tolerate  any  kind  of  musical  instrument. 

We  have  seen  the  same  reaction  in  our  own  day. 


Music  the  Handmaiden  of  Religion  315 

The  organ  had  a  hard  struggle  to  get  into  the  church. 
There  is  one  denomination  to-day  that  will  not  have 
the  organ  in  its  service.  The  violin  was  long  con- 
sidered to  be  of  the  Devil,  and  would  not  be  tolerated 
in  the  musical  service.  And  it  is  said  of  one  of  the 
early  pioneers  in  our  church,  Lyman  Wight,  that  he 
would  not  allow  the  congregation  in  his  charge  to 
sing  the  different  parts.  They  could  sing  soprano, 
but  they  must  not  sing  anything  else — lest  they 
pander  to  the  world.  So  the  young  people  congre- 
gated out  in  the  woods,  of  moonlight  nights,  while 
Lyman  was  asleep,  and  sang  the  different  parts. 

SPHERE  MUSIC 

There  have  been  in  the  past  a  number  of  great 
musical  festivals.  Job  tells  us  that  when  the  founda- 
tions of  the  earth  were  laid,  "The  morning  stars 
sang  together,  and  all  the  sons  of  God  shouted  for 
joy."  That  may  be  the  origin  of  the  idea  that  we  so 
frequently  note  in  literature.  I  refer  to  the  idea  of 
sphere  music.  The  idea  that  the  stars,  as  they  roll 
upon  their  wings,  "in  the  midst  of  the  glory  of  God," 
as  the  Book  of  Covenants  says,  give  forth  a  melody 
too  deep  and  grand  for  mortal  ears  to  hear,  but  al- 
ways ascending  to  God  on  high  in  praise  and  adora- 
tion. 

Be  that  as  it  may,  if  Job  was  right,  when  the 
corner  stone  of  the  earth  was  laid  they  had  a  musical 
festival. 

On  the  occasion  when  the  Israelites  had  crossed 
the  Red  Sea,  and  while  they  were  yet  looking  upon 


316  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

the  dead  bodies  of  the  Egyptians  cast  upon  the 
shore,  and  while  their  hearts  were  filled  with  the 
terror  and  the  wonder  of  the  miracle  that  they  had 
witnessed,  they  got  together  and  held  a  musical 
festival,  and  the  record  says,  "Then  sang  Moses  and 
the  children  of  Israel  this  song  unto  the  Lord,  and 
spake,  saying,  I  will  sing  unto  the  Lord,  for  he  hath 
triumphed  gloriously;  the  horse  and  his  rider  hath 
he  thrown  into  the  sea."  The  song  continues  through 
the  greater  part  of  the  fifteenth  chapter  of  Exodus ; 
and  at  its  close  all  of  the  women,  led  by  Miriam, 
came  forth  with  their  timbrels  or  tambourines,  and 
danced  and  repeated  the  song  that  the  men  had  just 
finished. 

IN  THE  SCHOOL  OF  THE  PROPHETS 

The  Israelites  are  said  to  have  carried  with  them 
the  musical  culture  of  Egypt,  which  was  more  or 
less  well  developed  and  then  they  proceeded  to  de- 
velop a  musical  program  of  their  own,  particularly 
in  the  temple  service.  The  leaders  in  this  move- 
ment were  the  prophets,  and  especially  David.  Luther 
said,  "Music  is  the  art  of  the  prophets."  And  Smith's 
Bible  Dictionary  is  authority  for  the  statement  that 
music  was  one  of  the  chief  things  taught  in  the 
school  of  the  prophets.  Speaking  of  David,  you  will 
remember  the  occasion  when  he  went  into  the  tent 
of  Saul,  who  was  possessed  of  a  devil,  and  with  the 
aid  of  his  harp,  cast  out  the  evil  spirit.  Rather  a 
significant  incident.  David  seemed  to  have  been 
efficient  in  casting  out  devils;  he  cast  one  out  of 


Music  the  Handmaiden  of  Religion  317 

Goliath  and  one  out  of  Saul,  using  two  different  in- 
struments, but  both  of  them  very  effectively. 

I  might  digress  here  to  say  that  I  have  heard  dif- 
ferent men  on  different  occasions  argue  that  the  ex- 
perience of  David  was  an  evidence  that  we  ought  not 
to  make  preparation.  We  ought  simply  to  trust  God. 
Now  that's  a  good  argument  if  it  is  properly  applied, 
but  it  may  be  carried  too  far.  We  may  have  a  mental 
picture  of  David  waving  aside  the  armor  and  sword 
offered  to  him  and  going  out  with  his  sling,  firing  at 
random,  God  taking  charge  of  the  missile  and  plant- 
ing it,  ping!  right  in  the  center  of  the  giant's  fore- 
head, thus  ending  the  story;  but  probably  the  facts 
are  that  David  had  passed  many  years  practicing 
with  the  instrument  used  against  the  giant.  He  had 
been  a  shepherd  boy,  and  I  presume  he  had  practiced 
on  animate  and  inanimate  targets  until  nine  times 
out  of  ten  he  could  put  a  pebble  just  where  he  wanted 
to;  so,  while  he  went  out  with  faith,  trusting  God 
and  giving  him  glory,  he  was  ready.  If  there  is  any- 
thing in  his  experience,  it  is  an  argument  in  favor  of 
practice  and  preparation. 

So,  when  he  went  into  the  tent  of  Saul,  I  do  not 
think  he  went  unprepared.  Sanil  was  a  fearsome  man 
to  face,  at  best,  and  when  he  was  possessed  of  a  devil 
it  must  have  been  a  trying  experience  to  go  into  his 
tent  and  confront  him.  I  do  not  think  that  David 
went  in  and  practiced  some  wild  incantation  like  an 
Indian  medicine  man  that  exorcised  the  evil  spirit 
through  some  magic  rite.  David  was  a  master  of  the 


318  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

harp,  and  I  imagine  that  he  played  melodies,  and 
sang  songs  redolent  with  sacred  memories  that  ap- 
pealed to  Saul,  and  created  a  religious,  harmonious 
atmosphere  in  which  the  Devil  did  not  feel  at  home, 
so  he  got  up  and  left.  That  was  all.  The  Devil 
doesn't  like  harmony.  He  likes  discord.  David 
brought  in  a  quieting,  soothing,  religious  atmosphere 
of  music,  and  the  result  was  that  the  evil  spirit  left 
Saul.  But  it  takes  practice  to  do  that.  I  wouldn't 
try  to  play  on  the  harp.  I  am  afraid  it  would  have 
exactly  the  opposite  effect  and  the  Devil  enter  into 
my  hearers. 

AFTER    THEY    HAD    SUNG    A    HYMN 

When  Jesus  came  into  the  world  it  is  recorded  that 
the  heavenly  host  appeared  over  Judea  singing  and 
praising  God,  and  wishing  humanity  well.  When 
Jesus  was  about  to  leave  this  old  earth  he  called  his 
disciples  into  an  upper  room  where  they  observed  the 
Passover.  He  served  them  the  sacrament,  and  finally 
when  they  were  about  to  disband,  never  to  meet 
again  in  the  flesh,  this  very  brief  but  very  significant 
statement  is  made,  "And  after  they  had  sung  a 
hymn  they  went  out  unto  the  Mount  of  Olives." 

Who  do  you  think  suggested  singing  that  hymn? 
Who  do  you  suppose  selected  that  hymn?  Jesus 
Christ  had  been  Master  of  ceremonies  all  during  the 
evening."  He  was  president  of  the  meeting,  and  with- 
out doubt  he  chose,  at  the  last  moment  of  his  last 
meeting  with  his  disciples,  to  engage  in  song  service 
with  them. 


Music  the  Handmaiden  of  Religion  319 

THE   OBJECTIVE   OF   MUSICAL    CULTURE 

But  perhaps  we  had  better  pass  on  to  another 
phase  of  the  subject  that  I  am  to  consider,  and  that 
is,  Music  as  a  means  and  not  an  end,  in  itself.  A 
critic  I  have  recently  read  after,  said  that  too  often 
church  music  is  regarded  as  an  end  in  itself,  when  it 
always  should  be  a  means  to  an  end.  In  other  words, 
our  musicians  should  not  be  satisfied  with  obtaining 
perfection  of  expression. 

They  ought  not  to  think  of  it  as  being  their  func- 
tion to  entertain  or  to  show  off,  but  it  is  theirs  to 
engage  in  religious  service,  and  their  profession  is 
not  an  end  in  itself,  but  a  means  to  an  end.  We  may 
discover  what  that  end  is  when  we  ask  ourselves, 
What  is  the  end  of  all  religion?  The  answer  comes 
back  immediately,  It  is  the  development  and  salva- 
tion of  man:  First  to  win  sinners  to  Christ,  and 
second  to  help  Christians  live  the  Christian  religion. 

The  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  has  a  twofold  task.  The 
first  is  by  argumentation  and  logic  to  convince  the 
mind  of  man;  and  the  second  is  to  break  the  stub- 
born and  wicked  heart  of  man;  and  I  conclude  that 
you  cannot  get  very  far  convincing  the  brain  of  man 
until  you  break  the  heart  of  man,  and  make  him  truly 
repentant.  Here  is  where  music  enters  in,  because 
it  appeals,  not  logically  but  directly,  through  emo- 
tion. It  is  the  language  that  speaks  to  the  heart. 
After  the  preacher  has  reasoned  and  the  sinner  sits 
unconvinced,  the  people  sing  "Nearer,  my  God,  to 


320 The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

thee,"  and  something  comes  into  his  heart  that  com- 
pletes the  work. 

If  this,  then,  is  the  objective  of  music,  there  ought 
to  be  in  the  church  the  closest  cooperation  between 
the  music  department  and  the  department  of  preach- 
ing— the  work  of  the  preacher  being  primarily  the 
mission  of  preaching  to  save  the  world. 

IS   MUSIC   PERFORMING  ITS   MISSION? 

We  may  ask  ourselves  two  questions,  and  the  first 
of  these  is  this :  Is  music  performing  its  full  mission 
in  the  work  of  developing  and  saving  man  in  con- 
nection with  the  work  of  preaching  the  word?  I 
mean  throughout  the  church,  in  all  the  branches  and 
districts.  Not  so  many  years  ago  I  attended  a  re- 
union. The  prayer  services  were  splendid;  preach- 
ing was  fine — I  thought  so ;  I  did  part  of  it  myself — 
but  the  music  was  simply  atrocious.  It  was  a 
tragedy.  There  was  one  time  when  the  music  de- 
partment was  not  performing  its  full  function  in  the 
work  of  reaching  sinners  and  comforting  Saints. 

Music  has  its  work  among  Saints  in  the  preaching 
meeting,  in  the  prayer  meeting,  and  in  revival 
services,  to  create  an  atmosphere  religious  in  char- 
acter, so  that  the  hearts  of  the  people  will  be  ready 
for  the  word  of  instruction  or  admonition,  as  the  case 
may  be,  and  in  missionary  work  in  tent  meetings  and 
street  meetings,  and  missionary  meetings  of  all 
kinds,  the  music  department  must  rally  to  the  sup- 
port of  the  preachers. 

The  chorister  comes  into  close  connection  in  his 


Music  the  Handmaiden  of  Religion  321 

work  with  the  preacher,  and  has  it  within  his  power 
in  his  selection  of  hymns  either  to  make  or  mar  the 
service,  to  a  very  great  extent. 

You  have  all  heard  many  anecdotes  about  hymns 
that  have  been  unwisely  selected.  Brother  Greene 
likes  to  tell  about  one  time  when  he  and  Brother 
Phillips  were  holding  meetings  in  a  city  in  the  East. 
Brother  Phillips  preached  on  the  subject  "Hell"  and 
his  sermon  was  immediately  preceded  by  a  solo,  "Tell 
mother  I'll  be  there." 

Strickland  W.  Gillilan  said  when  he  finished  his 
first  sermon  the  choir  sang  "Hallelujah,  'tis  done." 

I  remember — perhaps  I  ought  not  to  tell  this,  but 
when  Brother  Richard  Lambert,  Brother  Carpenter, 
and  myself  were  leaving  Lamoni  with  our  families 
they  gave  us  a  little  farewell  meeting  and  sang, 
"Praise  God  from  whom  all  blessings  flow."  One 
might  have  thought  them  glad  to  get  rid  of  Brethren 
Lambert  and  Carpenter. 

In  contradistinction  to  these  experiences,  I  recall 
many  times  when  the  opening  hymn,  without  any 
previous  arrangement  or  understanding,  has  fitted  in 
with  the  theme  so  completely  that  it  was  perfectly 
evident  that  there  had  been  a  spiritual  cooperation 
between  the  preacher  and  the  chorister,  or  whoever 
selected  the  hymn. 

I  recall  one  time  going  into  the  pulpit  in  Lamoni 

to  preach  on  the  mission  of  Jesus  Christ.     No  one 

knew  what  I  was  going  to  preach  about,  but  Brother 

Burgess  announced  the  anthem,  "From  glory  down 

11 


322  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

to  Calvary,"  which  fitted  in  with  my  theme  so  per- 
fectly that  I  felt  that  the  Spirit  of  God  which  had 
directed  me  in  my  subject  had  directed  him  in  his 
selection  of  the  anthem. 

I  may  as  well  confess  that,  as  a  rule,  I  do  not  feel 
very  much  interested  in  many  modern  anthems.  It 
is  probably  a  lack  of  education  on  my  part,  but  I 
have  heard  a  great  many  of  which  I  have  sometimes 
said,  if  they  were  selling  for  ten  cents  a  dozen  I 
wouldn't  take  home  more  than  six  of  them.  But 
sometimes  I  hear  one  that  is  so  perfect  in  its  text, 
music,  and  rendition  that  I  feel  well  repaid  for  listen- 
ing to  those  I  did  not  enjoy.  Probably,  as  Mark 
Twain  said,  the  others  were  better  than  they 
sounded.  I  am  more  interested  in  congregational 
singing. 

DOES    MUSIC    EVER    EXCEED    ITS    FUNCTION? 

Now  we  must  ask  the  question,  Does  music  at  any 
time  exceed  its  proper  function?  In  the  sectarian 
churches,  as  we  sometimes  call  them,  the  sermon 
has  been  gradually  crowded  into  a  very  secondary 
place.  The  average  sermon  is  not  only  short  but 
thin.  The  modern  sermon  is  a  sermonet  from  a 
preacheret.  A  little  sugar-coated  pellet  in  a  teaspoon- 
ful  of  musical  jelly — and  the  preacher  devoutly  hopes 
the  audience  will  swallow  the  jelly  without  discover- 
ing the  presence  of  the  pill. 

I  hope  our  church  will  always  have  upstanding 
preachers  who  give  a  man's  dose  of  gospel  truth ;  and 
that  their  efforts  will  always  be  accompanied  by  a 


Music  the  Handmaiden  of  Religion  '  323 

beautiful  and  powerful  musical  program,  of  proper 
length,  that  will  prepare  the  hearts  of  the  people 
and  carry  home  to  their  emotions  the  gospel  of 
Jesus  Christ. 

Therefore  I  say,  God  speed  the  musical  work,  and 
especially  congregational  singing.  We  want  to  re- 
vive the  spirit  of  song  service  among  people,  so  that 
they  may  sing  with  the  choir.  We  will  need  trained 
singers  to  lead  us,  but  we  must  be  a  singing  people 
to  sound  forth  our  songs  of  everlasting  joy  in  Zion. 


BLUE   PENCIL   NOTES 

NOT  long  ago  I  stood  on  the  summit  of  Mount 
Manitou.      About    me    were    giant    granite 
bowlders  and  great  pine  trees;  before  me 
were  the  eastern  plains,  out  over  which  I  could  look 
for  more  than  a  hundred  miles  and  watch  the  play 
of  sunlight  and  Titanic  shadows ;  about  me  were  the 
rush  and  roar  of  the  elements,  for  it  was  storming 
where  I  stood. 

And  there  I  had  a  new  vision  of  the  awful  majesty 
and  power  of  God.  But  the  bigger  he  seemed  to 
grow  to  my  vision  the  smaller  I  became.  There  was 
nothing  there  in  all  that  I  saw  to  indicate  to  me  that 
the  God  who  made  Manitou  had  the  slightest  interest 
in  an  insignificant  creature  like  me. 

But  then  there  came  to  me  something  else,  a 
clearer  perception  than  I  had  ever  before  enjoyed  of 
the  great  necessity  that  Jesus  Christ  should  come  in 
the  flesh  teaching  men  that  God  does  care.  The 
mountains  declare  a  God  of  majesty  and  power;  but 
Jesus  came  to  reveal  a  personal  God  of  sympathy  and 
understanding. 

The  law  of  Moses  came  down  from  Sinai  with  thun- 
der and  terror,  so  that  the  people  trembled  in  their 
shoes  and  hid  their  eyes  and  said,  Surely  our  God  is 

324 


Blue  Pencil  Notes  325 

a  terrible  God  of  power  and  dominion.  But  Jesus 
Christ  came  walking  along  the  shores  of  Galilee, 
saying,  "Come  unto  me,  all  ye  that  labor  and  are 
heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest." 

•  Through  him  we  may  dare  to  presume  to  make 
friends  with  God,  for  he  said  to  his  followers, 
"Henceforth  I  call  you  not  servants;  but  I  have 
called  you  friends."  We  don't  get  that  idea  from  ele- 
mental evidences.  We  must  have  a  spiritual  reve- 
lation, a  revelation  of  God's  personality.  That 
thought  is  tremendously  important. 

In  all  the  infinitely  varied,  multiform  manifesta- 
tions of  intelligent  life  in  the  animal  world,  there  is 
ever  a  struggle  upward  towards  a  more  well-marked, 
clearly  defined,  positive,  and  enduring  personality, 
reaching  its  climax  in  this  world  in  man.  Passing 
from  man  to  God  is  there  any  reason  to  presume 
that  the  process  will  be  reversed?  Rather  may  we 
assume  that  in  him  is  ever  resident  the  most  com- 
plex, yet  clearly  defined  personality,  eternal,  om- 
nipotent, omniscient,  beyond  our  power  in  and  of  our- 
selves ever  to  understand  or  find  out.  What  is  that 
personality  ?  What  are  its  moral  attributes  ? 

Thomas  Carlyle  declared  that  light  was  ahead  for 
him  and  his  feet  had  found  firm  standing  only  when 
finally  he  was  able  to  believe  that  God  and  not  a 
fiend  had  made  the  universe.  Browning  rejoiced 


326  The  Word  that  Became  Flesh 

when  he  could  write:  "So,  the  All-Great  were  the 
All-Loving  too." 

Very  many  scientists  admit  the  existence  of  God 
—a  God — something  unaccountable,  unapproachable. 
But  what  sort  of  God  is  it?  Exactly  the  God  that  is- 
revealed  by  the  heart  of  a  granite  bowlder,  the  roar 
of  the  mountain  winds,  the  sweep  of  the  far-flung 
plain,  the  arch  of  the  skies — an  elemental  force, 
awful,  magnificent — that  may  care  or  may  not  care, 
that  may  feel  or  may  not  feel — who  knows?  Man 
cannot  commune  with  Saturn,  or  have  fellowship 
with  the  tides,  or  be  friends  with  gravitation. 

Yet  the  idea  of  the  personality  of  God  is  infinitely 
important  to  us.  On  that  idea  hinges  our  destiny, 
our  very  conception  of  our  own  personality.  As 
Snowden  says: 

"The  question  of  the  personality  of  God  is  one  of 
fundamental  importance.  Our  answer  to  it  will 
frame  our  conception  of  God,  of  his  character  arid 
worth  and  relation  to  the  world;  shape  our  view  of 
the  universe;  determine  the  reality  and  worth  of 
our  own  personality;  measure  all  our  values;  decide 
character  and  destiny;  and  underlie  all  our  psychol- 
ogy, ethics,  economics,  sociology,  politics,  science, 
philosophy,  and  religion.  As  this  central,  sovereign 
Personality  of  the  universe  stands  or  falls  will  all 
finite  personalities  and  worth  abide  or  wither." 


Blue  Pencil  Notes  327 

We  are  dependent  upon  revelation  through  faith 
to  bring  us  any  true  concept  whatever  of  the  charac- 
ter and  personality  of  God.  And  the  most  vital  and 
all  important  revelation  of  all  time  was  in  the  person 
of  Jesus  Christ.  In  him  "the  Word  was  made  flesh 
and  dwelt  among  us,  full  of  grace  and  truth."  For 
that  revelation  I  was  most  profoundly  thankful  as  I 
listened  to  the  roar  of  the  elements  upon  Manitou. 
It  lightened  the  whole  vast  universe  like  a  candle  in 
the  window  at  home  at  night.  It  put  a  life  and  a  soul 
and  a  purpose  into  all  things  that  I  saw  and  heard 
and  felt. 


BOOK    SIX 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup 


OCEAN    EVENING    HYMN 


The  wind-tossed  pines  are  still  at  last  and  rest  them  from 

their  strife. 
A  single  star  in  all  the  vast  blue  sky  leaps  into  life. 

The  waters  sing  their  evening  hymn  along  the  sloping  shore. 
Now  falls  the  purple  twilight  dim  and  night  draws  near 

once  more. 

The  day  is  dying  on  the  sea  and  in  the  forest  aisles; 
And  yet  serene  as  one  might  be  who  falls  asleep  and  smiles. 

How  ends  the  day  for  you  and  me,  when,  all  life's  tumult  o'er, 
The  sun  goes  down  into  the  sea  and  darkness  hides  the  shore? 

Shall  we  be  steadfast  as  the  pines? — obedient  as  the  tides 
That    follow   where    the   hand    divine    with    mighty    power 

guides? 

Will  our  good  vessel  reef  her  sail  by  quiet,  friendly  shores? 
Or  rush  where  storm  and  wind  prevail  and  angry  breaker 

roars? 

God  grant  us  that  the  twilight  dim  may  shroud  some  peace- 
ful bay 

Whose  ebbing  tides  shall  sing  of  Him — our  refuge  night  and 
day. 

E.  A.  S. 


THE   INSIDE   OF   THE    CUP 

Sermon  Sunday  evening,  October  2,  1921,  at  the  Stone 
Church,  Independence,  Missouri. 

MY  TEXT  to-night  is  found  in  Matthew,  the 
23d  chapter,  the  26th  verse,  "Cleanse  first 
that  which  is  within  the  cup  and  the  platter, 
that  the  outside  of  them  may  be  clean  also." 

I  presume  that  you  are  all  quite  familiar  with  the 
setting  of  this  text,  which  might  give  us  the  theme, 
"The  inside  of  the  cup."  Jesus  had  been  invited  to 
dine  with  the  Pharisees.  I  am  sure  I  do  not  know 
why  they  invited  him  to  dine  with  them,  as  they 
had  little  in  common,  unless  it  might  be  that  they 
wished  an  opportunity  to  watch  him  and  criticize 
him  and  find  fault.  At  least  that  was  what  they  did. 
They  began  immediately  to  complain  that  he  had 
not  washed  his  hands  before  he  ate. 

Jesus  Christ  was  prepared  to  pour  out  all  his  splen- 
did powers  in  the  great  work  of  the  salvation  of  men, 
but  he  was  constantly  confronted  by  small-spirited 
and  mean-spirited  men,  who  p'icked  up  these  trivial 
things  that  they  might  use  them  to  defeat  his  work. 
They  watched  their  opportunity  to  complain  that  he 
had  not  washed  his  hands  before  he  ate.  They  com- 
plained that  he  came  eating  and  drinking  and  not 
fasting  as  John  had  done.  He  healed  the  sick  on  the 
Sabbath  Day — dreadful  desecration.  He  even  had 

331 


332  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

the  bad  judgment  to  hail  from  Nazareth — "Can  any 
good  come  out  of  Nazareth?"  We  can  only  guess  at 
the  amount  of  heckling  that  he  was  compelled  to  en- 
dure and  the  volume  and  kind  of  rumors  concerning 
him,  current  in  Jerusalem.  They  began  to  drive  the 
nails  in  his  hands  long  before  the  cross  was  put  to- 
gether. 

To-day  any  man  in  any  department  of  church  work 
who  is  prepared  to  give  all  his  service  and  strength 
and  power  to  the  upbuilding  of  Zion,  who  finds  him- 
self confronted  by  obstacles  thrown  in  his  path,  may 
comfort  himself  with  the  thought  that  the  servant 
is  not  greater  than  the  master. 

I  do  not  think  these  Pharisees  had  any  real  cause 
to  find  fault  with  Christ.  I  imagine  that  the  reason 
he  did  not  wash  his  hands  was  because  they  were 
clean.  The  difference  between  Jesus  and  the  Phar- 
isees was  that  they  were  clean  on  the  outside  only 
while  he  was  clean  inside  and  outside.  They  were 
thinking  about  ceremonial  cleanliness,  not  sanitation. 
From  their  standpoint,  a  vessel  might  be  spotlessly 
clean  and  sanitary  and  yet  be  ceremonially  unclean. 

FROM  VESSELS  TO  MEN 

Jesus  usually  selected  his  illustrations  from  things 
familiar  to  his  hearers.  The  country  people  could 
understand  the  picture  of  the  sower  that  went  forth 
to  sow.  The  fisher  folks  could  understand  the  illus- 
tration of  the  net  cast  into  the  sea  that  gathered  of 
all  kinds.  The  people  from  the  market  knew  what 
he  was  talking  about  when  he  said,  "Are  not  two 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup  333 

sparrows  sold  for  a  farthing?"  And  so  in  this  in- 
stance he  used  an  illustration  from  the  very  table 
before  him;  in  Yankee  parlance,  from  under  their 
very  noses,  and  said,  "You  ought  to  cleanse  first  the 
inside  of  the  cup  and  platter." 

We  understand,  of  course,  that  he  was  not  giving 
them  a  lesson  in  dishwashing;  he  was  talking  about 
vessels  and  thinking  about  men.  And  he  led  their 
attention  instantly  from  the  cleansing  of  vessels  to 
the  cleansing  of  men  and  so  came  immediately  to  the 
very  root  of  his  philosophy;  you  ought  to  cleanse 
first  the  inner  man  and  not  give  all  your  attention  to 
externals. 

That  is  strictly  in  harmony  with  the  lesson  I  have 
already  read  (John  3 :  1-7)  where  he  was  speaking  to 
Nicodemus,  and  said,  "Except  a  man  be  born  of 
water  and  of  the  Spirit,  he  cannot  enter  into  the 
kingdom  of  God."  I  do  not  intend  to  preach  a  ser- 
mon on  baptism,  but  the  thing  that  baptism  stands 
for  is  of  supreme  importance,  and  that  is  the  thing 
I  am  talking  about. 

A  brother  who  had  become  skeptical  said  to  me  at 
one  time  that  he  could  no  longer  see  any  significance 
in  water  baptism.  It  seems  to  me  to  have  a  very 
splendid  significance.  From  the  very  beginning  man 
has  been  accustomed  to  cleanse  his  body  with  water, 
and  when  God  selected  a  symbol  that  would  stand, 
not  only  to  the  individual  but  to  all  who  had  become 
conscious  of  his  conversion,  as  a  symbol  that  would 
typify  the  cleansing  of  his  spirit  from  the  stains  of 


334  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

sin  and  evil,  he  instituted  the  ordinance  of  baptism 
by  immersion  in  water. 

Of  course,  we  understand  that  water  cannot  ac- 
tually cleanse  the  spirit,  because  the  spirit  is  im- 
material and  sin  is  immaterial  and  cannot  be  washed 
away  with  water,  actually.  But  the  outward  cleans- 
ing in  water  is  a  symbol  of  the  inner  cleansing  of  the 
spirit  that  must  accompany  baptism  if  baptism  is  to 
have  any  force  or  any  significance  whatever. 

DE    FACTO    CLEANLINESS 

But  of  the  two,  while  God  teaches  the  great  im- 
portance of  ceremonial  cleanliness,  cleanliness  in  fact 
is  of  much  more  importance.  The  ceremonial  symbol 
means  nothing  unless  it  is  accompanied  by  a  corre- 
sponding cleaning  of  the  life  of  the  individual  who 
submits  himself  to  the  ordinance  of  baptism,.  God 
wants  de  facto  cleanliness.  We  may  have  in  the 
church  men  who  are  entirely  clean  ceremonially, 
whose  lives  are  absolutely  unclean  in  the  sight  of 
God. 

Jesus  Christ  believed  in  individual  regeneration. 
That  was  the  keynote  of  all  his  preaching.  It  is  true 
that  he  believed  in  social  regeneration,  but  he  pro- 
posed to  build  a  regenerated  society  out  of  regener- 
ated individuals.  He  did  not  make  the  mistake  of 
some  philosophies  and  societies  of  to-day  who  are 
trying  to  build  a  regenerated  society  out  of  unregen- 
erated  individuals.  The  mode  by  which  regeneration 
is  to  be  wrought  out  is  revealed  in  his  gospel.  It 
strikes  at  the  very  root  of  human  need  and  begins 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup  335 

with  the  transformation  of  the  character  of  the  in- 
dividual. 

People  tell  us  that  Jesus  Christ  lived  a  long  time 
ago,  that  times  have  changed,  that  this  is  the  stren- 
uous age,  that  his  philosophy  is  not  adapted  to  our 
age,  and  that  man  cannot  live  by  it  now.  I  believe 
that  if  Jesus  Christ  were  here  to-day  he  would  not 
change  his  philosophy  in  any  particular-  I  think  if 
he  should  come  to  Kansas  City  or  New  York  or  Lon- 
don to-day  he  would  preach  absolutely  the  same 
doctrine  and  the  same  plan  that  he  preached  when 
he  was  here  before.  I  do  not  think  that  anything 
we  have  to  offer  in  this  wonderful  age  of  ours  would 
impress  Jesus  Christ  in  the  least  or  disturb  his  se- 
renity at  all. 

They  say  that  a  real  typical  Indian  never  allows 
himself  to  reveal  a  trace  of  surprise  at  anything  the 
white  man  has  done.  He  may  be  taken  from  his 
tepee,  his  pony  herds,  his  reservation,  to  New  York 
among  the  skyscrapers,  and  look  out  upon  the  battle- 
ship and  aeroplanes.  He  does  not  allow  a  muscle 
of  his  face  to  show  one  particle  of  surprise.  There 
is  a  racial  idiosyncrasy  and  a  racial  pride  which  for- 
bids him  to  betray  surprise  at  anything  the  white 
man  has  done. 

THE   SON    OF    MAN 

For  quite  different  reasons,  if  Jesus  Christ  were 
here  to-day  he  would  not  be  in  the  least  disturbed  or 
surprised  or  disconcerted  by  anything  that  this  world 
could  present  for  his  consideration.  The  reason  is 


336  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

that  while  we  look  at  externals  and  are  wonderfully 
impressed,  they  do  not  impress  him  at  all.  He  looks 
beyond  them. 

We  look  at  a  grand  modern  skyscraper  or  one  of 
our  palatial  hotels  and  we  are  filled  with  wonder  and 
admiration.  The  building  may  swarm  with  thieves 
and  harlots,  but  we  do  not  stop  to  think  about  that. 
We  are  thinking  about  the  building.  When  I  say 
thieves  I  do  not  mean  pickpockets;  I  mean  thieves 
who  steal  on  such  a  gigantic  scale  that  their  opera- 
tions are  entirely  legal.  And  when  I  say  harlots  I 
do  not  mean  street  walkers,  but  women  who  are  so 
wealthy  and  so  well-placed  socially  that  they  may 
indulge  in  philanderings  all  their  lives  and  pass 
through  the  embraces  of  a  series  of  men,  and  yet 
are  respectable.  Now,  if  Jesus  Christ  were  here  he 
would  not  look  at  the  building,  but  at  the  men  and 
women  in  the  building.  He  would  ponder  the  eternal 
problem,  how  to  reach  and  save  them. 

I  do  not  know  why  Christ  should  be  impressed  by 
anything  we  have  to  offer.  We  are  told  that  he  was 
with  God  in  the  morning  of  creation  and  that  nothing 
was  made  without  him.  Why  should  the  great  being 
who  saw  the  stars  and  planets  come  out  of  the  great 
garage  and  go  down  the  heavenly  speedway,  be'  im- 
pressed when  he  sees  a  millionaire  ride  by*  in  his 
limousine?  We  speculate  about  the  automobile,  but 
he  speculates  about  the  man  in  the  automobile. 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup  337 

"I    AM    A    MAN ;    I    CHANGE    NOT" 

Jesus  Christ  would  not  need  to  change  his  phi- 
losophy, because  he  is  the  man  of  the  age.  The  title 
that  he  took  to  himself,  "The  Son  of  Man,"  to  my 
mind  is  full  of  significance.  Not  the  son  of  one  race 
or  one  age,  but  the  Son  of  Man,  the  representative 
of  man  in  a  racial  sense.  And  we  are  told  in  the  Bible 
that  he  is  the  same  yesterday,  to-day,  and  forever. 
He  changes  not;  neither  does  his  plan  change.  And 
if  God  in  heaven  with  divine  confidence  can  say,  "I 
am  God,  I  change  not,"  it  is  true  that  man  with  hu- 
mility but  with  equal  truth  can  say,  "And  I  am  man, 
and  I  change  not." 

The  primal  passions  and  needs  of  man  are  the 
same  in  all  ages ;  they  never  change.  It  is  true  that 
men  may  change  in  the  sense  that  they  are  better  or 
worse  in  one  age  or  in  another,  but  that  is  because 
man  has  either  taken  these  passions  and  caused 
them  to  serve  noble  purposes  or  else  has  permitted 
them  to  drag  him  down.  Man  is  the  same  yesterday, 
to-day,  and  forever  so  far  as  his  needs,  his  tempta- 
tions, his  appetites,  and  his  passions  are  concerned. 
I  presume  there  is  not  a  type  of  man  that  ever  lived 
in  the  history  of  the  world  but  what  is  on  the  earth 
to-day.  If  Jesus  were  to  walk  the  streets  of  Kansas 
City  to-day  he  would  meet  Pilate,  Herod,  blind  Bar- 
timeus,  Mary  Magdalene,  and  the  very  twin  brothers 
of  the  Pharisees  with  whom  he  dined. 

We  may  for  a  time  consider  the  application  of  our 
text,  "You  ought  to  cleanse  first  that  which  is  with- 


338  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

in  the  cup."  I  believe  that  it  has  an  application  to 
communities,  to  the  nation,  to  society  as  a  whole, 
and  especially  to  individuals.  We  will  make  the  ap- 
plication first  of  all  to  our  city  life — our  community 
life. 

THE  INSIDE   OF  THE   MUNICIPAL  CUP 

We  have  in  this  country  one  city  that  is  bigger 
than  any  other  and  one  that  has  a  more  profound 
influence  on  the  national  life  than  any  other.  The 
foreigner  who  comes  to  this  country,  landing  at  New 
York  City,  views  first  of  all  the  Statue  of  Liberty 
holding  aloft  the  torch  which  is  supposed  to  en- 
lighten the  world  and  which  gives  promise  that  he  is 
coming  into  a  community  where  he  will  find  freedom 
and  virtue.  Next  he  sees  the  wonderful  skyline  of 
New  York  City.  He  becomes  gradually  cognizant 
of  its  fabulous  wealth  and  power.  But  later  he  finds 
that  it  is  very  largely  promise.  He  learns  almost  as 
soon  as  he  is  naturalized  that  he  can  sell  his  vote 
just  as  easily  as  he  sells  his  labor.  He  finds  that  he 
can  buy  the  police  just  as  easily  as  he  buys  his  ba- 
nanas. The  chief  of  police  in  Chicago  reported  only 
a  few  days  ago  that  one  half  of  his  entire  police  force 
is  engaged  in  the  illicit  sale  of  liquor. 

We  may  come  a  little  nearer  home,  because  every 
large  city  is  a  small  town  grown  up,  and  every  small 
city  and  every  small  community  has*  its  gamblers, 
its  bootleggers,  its  cigaret  fiends,  its  crooked  politics, 
and  its  fallen  women;  and  every  large  city  depends 
upon  the  patronage  of  the  smaller  cities  to  keep  up 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup  339 

its  vice  districts.  The  vice  district  of  Chicago  lives 
upon  income  derived  from  visitors  from  small  towns 
and  country  districts.  A  certain  number  of  our  boys 
and  girls  each  year  traverse  Fifteenth  Street  from 
Independence  to  Kansas  City  that  they  may  help  to 
maintain  the  vice  dens  in  that  city. 

It  is  a  good  thing  for  us  to  have  fine  lawns  and 
parks  and  public  buildings  and  paved  streets,  but 
the  thing  that  is  of  primary  importance  is  the  men 
and  the  women  and  the  children  that  live  in  the  city. 
So  the  voice  of  Jesus  Christ  comes  home  to  every 
community,  whether  it  be  great  or  small,  with  this 
statement,  "You  ought  to  cleanse  first  the  inside  of 
the  municipal  cup." 

I  believe  that  wherever  members  of  this  church 
live  in  any  community  their  interest  ought  to  be  cast 
towards  making  it  a  better  city  or  village,  a  better 
community  in  which  to  live.  And  I  am  glad  that  we, 
here  in  Independence,  though  we  have  fallen  short 
in  some  things,  at  least  have  made  good  in  some 
others.  Long  before  the  Nation  went  dry,  the 
saloons  were  compelled  to  move  out  of  Independence, 
and  it  was  largely  the  vote  of  Latter  Day  Saints  that 
caused  them  to  move,  and  was  so  stated  by  the  Kan- 
sas City  papers  at  the  time. 

THE  INSIDE  OF  THE  NATIONAL  CUP 

Next  our  text  may  be  applied  to  our  national  life. 
The  Book  of  Mormon  tells  us  that  America  was  des- 
tined to  be  a  land  of  liberty  and  a  land  of  light  and 
freedom.  When  I  speak  of  America  in  this  sense  I 


340  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

always  think  of  our  Canadian  brethren  on  the  north, 
because  they  have  as  much  actual  freedom  as  we 
have.  But  I  am  now  speaking  in  the  United  States, 
and  the  message  comes  to  us  and  applies  particularly 
to  our  own  Nation.  I  want  to  read  to  you  the  promise 
made  in  the  Book  of  Mormon.  This  is  only  one  of 
many  promises. 

"And  now  we  can  behold  the  decrees 'of  God  con- 
cerning this  land,  that  it  is  a  land  of  promise,  that 
whatsoever  nation  shall  possess  it,  shall  serve  God, 
or  they  shall  be  swept  off  when  the  fullness  of  his 
wrath  shall  come  upon  them.  And  the  fullness  of 
his  wrath  cometh  upon  them  when  they  are  ripened 
in  iniquity ;  for  behold,  this  is  a  land  which  is  choice 
above  all  other  lands ;  wherefore  he  that  doth  possess 
it  shall  serve  God,  or  shall  be  swept  off;  for  it  is  the 
everlasting  decree  of  God.  And  it  is  not  until  the 
fullness  of  iniquity  among  the  children  of  the  land, 
that  they  are  swept  off.  And  this  cometh  unto  you,  0 
ye  Gentiles,  that  ye  may  know  the  decrees  of  God, 
that  ye  may  not  bring  down  the  fullness  of  the  wrath 
of  God  upon  you,  as  the  inhabitants  of  the  land  have 
hitherto  done.  Behold,  this  is  a  choice  land,  and  what- 
soever nation  shall  possess  it,  shall  be  free  from 
bondage,  and  from  captivity,  and  from  all  other  na- 
tions under  heaven,  if  they  will  but  serve  the  God  of 
the  land,  who  is  Jesus  Christ  who  hath  been  mani- 
fested by  the  things  which  we  have  written/' — Book 
of  Ether  1 :  31-35. 

We  learn  from  this  statement  that  the  people  on 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup  341 

this  land  are  to  be  a  free  people,  that  God  will  protect 
them  against  all  nations,  only  on  condition  that  they 
are  a  righteous  people,  and  if  they  are  ever  over- 
come and  destroyed  it  will  be  because  iniquity  has 
grown  up  among  them. 

That  is  exactly  in  accord  with  one  of  the  state- 
ments Abraham  Lincoln  made  in  one  of  his  speeches 
at  Springfield:  "At  what  point  shall  we  expect  the 
approach  of  danger?  By  what  means  shall  we  for- 
tify against  it?  Shall  we  expect  some  transatlantic 
military  giant  to  step  the  ocean  and  crush  us  at  a 
blow?  Never!  All  the  armies  of  Europe,  Asia,  and 
Africa  combined  .  .  .  could  not  by  force  take  a 
drink  from  the  Ohio  or  make  a  track  on  the  Blue 
Ridge  in  a  trial  of  a  thousand  years.  At  what  point 
then  is  the  approach  of  danger  to  be  expected?  I 
answer,  if  it  ever  reaches  us  it  must  spring  up 
amongst  us;  it  cannot  come  from  abroad.  If  de- 
struction is  our  lot  we  must  ourselves  be  its  author 
and  finisher.  As  a  nation  of  freed  men  we  must 
live  through  all  time,  or  die  by  suicide." — The  writ- 
ings of  Abraham  Lincoln,  vol.  1,  p.  149. 

Edwin  Markham  once  wrote  a  poem : 

"So,  I  fear,  my  country,  not  the  hand 
That  shall  hurl  night  and  whirlwind  on  the  land. 
I  fear  not  the  Titan  traitors  who  shall  rise, 
To  stride  like  brocken  shadows  on  our  skies; 
Not  giants  who  shall  come  to  overthrow, 
And  send  on  earth  an  Illiad  of  woe. 


342  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

"I  fear  the  vermin  that  shall  undermine 
Senate  and  citadel,  school  and  shrine — 
The  worm  of  greed,  the  fatted  form  of  ease, 
And  all  the  crawling  progeny  of  these — 
The  vermin  that  shall  honeycomb  the  towers 
And  walls  of  state  in  unsuspecting  hours." 

It  may  be  necessary  for  a  nation  to  have  its  army 
and  its  navy,  but  the  real  defense  of  the  nation  is  its 
men,  its  women,  and  its  children.  This  country  of 
ours  was  founded  by  God-fearing  people.  We  call 
them  Puritans.  It  is  true  that  they  may  have  been 
too  rigid.  They  may  have  been  very  austere.  But 
they  were  honorable,  upstanding,  clean,  honest,  and 
God-fearing  men  and  women.  And  if  we  think  for 
a  moment  that  the  work  they  began  can  be  carried 
on  by  a  drunken,  a  dissolute,  an  irreligious  and  God- 
less posterity,  we  are  making  a  terrible  mistake  con- 
cerning the  designs  of  God  regarding  this  Nation. 

The  greatest  menace  to  our  national  life  is  not 
Japan.  It  is  the  decline  of  religion  and  of  morality 
that  is  undermining  the  very  foundation  of  the  char- 
acter of  our  citizens.  And  certainly  the  statement  of 
Christ  comes  to  us,  You  ought  to  cleanse  the  inside 
of  the  national  cup,  and  not  give  all  your  attention 
to  external  power  and  riches. 

THE   INSIDE  OP  THE   SOCIAL    CUP 
Let  us  consider  now  the  application  of  our  text 
to  society — any  group  of  society    or    society    as  a 
whole.    A  long  time  ago  a  man  by  the  name  of  Paul 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup  343 

was  permitted  to  look  down  the  vistas  of  time  and 
to  give  a  diagnosis  of  the  spiritual  diseases  of  the 
latter  days.  Or  perhaps  I  should  say  it  was  a  prog- 
nosis. Possibly  by  diagnosing  the  diseases  socially 
of  his  time  with  the  added  inspiration  of  God  he 
was  able  to  make  this  prognosis :  "This  know  also, 
that  in  the  last  days  perilous  times  shall  come.  For 
men  shall  be  lovers  of  their  own  selves,  covetous, 
boasters,  proud,  blasphemers,  disobedient  to  parents, 
unthankful,  unholy,  without  natural  affection,  truce- 
breakers,  false  accusers,  incontinent,  fierce,  despisers 
of  those  that  are  good,  traitors,  heady,  highminded, 
lovers  of  pleasure  more  than  lovers  of  God;  having 
a  form  of  godliness,  but  denying  the  power  thereof : 
from  such  turn  away.  For  of  this  sort  are  they 
which  creep  into  houses  and  lead  captive  silly  women 
laden  with  sins,  led  away  with  divers  lusts." — 2 
Timothy  3 :  1-6. 

I  do  not  know  which  is  the  worse,  the  obscene 
man,  or  the  silly  woman  laden  with  sins  and  lusts ; 
but  the  two  of  them  are  beginning  to  loom  up  in 
our  social  life.  The  attention  of  the  whole  world 
has  recently  been  attracted  to  the  scandal  involved 
in  the  decline  and  fall  of  Roscoe  Arbuckle.  Yet  it 
has  been  wisely  said  that  this  is  an  incident  and  it 
will  be  forgotten  in  a  few  weeks.  It  is  but  a  symptom 
that  reveals  a  systematic  condition  of  our  social  life. 
Some  one  else  has  said  that  it  is  but  a  surface  in- 
dication of  the  great  undercurrent.  Paul  said  that 
in  the  last  day  people  should  be  "without  natural 


344  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

affection."  The  old  strong  love  of  wife  and  children 
and  home  that  safeguarded  the  very  issues  of  life 
is  giving  place  to  the  play  of  unnatural  passions  and 
affections,  unrestrained  by  law  or  conscience. 

Latter  Day  Saints  used  to  preach  very  often  on 
the  signs  of  the  times.  We  don't  need  to  any  more. 
The  times  preach  for  themselves,  and  they  have 
hundreds  of  interpreters  who  are  not  tinctured  with 
the  prejudice  that  might  be  laid  to  the  account  of 
Latter  Day  Saints,  who  have  insisted  for  years  that 
these  were  the  latter  days  and  that  the  predictions 
in  the  Bible  were  destined  to  be  fulfilled.  We  were 
met  with  an  almost  universal  cry  of  denial  and  were 
told  that  the  world  was  growing  better  and  rising 
constantly  to  higher  planes;  that  men  were  becom- 
ing more  religious,  more  enlightened,  and  more  hu- 
mane. We  do  not  now  have  to  interpret  the  times. 
Others  do  it  for  us. 

WHAT  A  JUDGE  SAID 

I  want  now  to  read  what  a  judge  says.  Judge 
Lazarus  in  finding  on  the  Arbuckle  case  said,  "In 
my  opinion,  we  are  not  trying  Roscoe  Arbuckle  alone, 
the  screen  celebrity  who  has  given  mirth  to  the  whole 
world.  We  are,  in  a  sense,  trying  ourselves,  our 
morals,  our  present-day  social  standards.  The  ques- 
tion is  larger  than  the  guilt  of  this  unfortunate,  it 
is  a  universal  issue." 

Now,  what  is  the  trouble?  We  cannot  conclude 
that  the  people  of  society,  the  men  and  women  of 
society,  are  not  outwardly  clean.  They  are  not 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup  345 

strangers  to  the  bathtub.  A  San  Francisco  phy- 
sician says  that  people  bathe  too  much  to-day  for 
their  own  health.  It  is  not  that  they  do  not  put 
on  enough  powder  and  perfume.  It  is  not  that  they 
are  sparing  in  clothes.  I  refer  to  quality  now,  and 
not  to  quantity.  I  read  a  little  story  the  other  day 
about  a  man  who  went  to  one  of  these  fashionable 
balls  and  when  he  looked  about  at  the  expanse  of 
bare  backs,  shoulders,  bosoms,  and  arms,  he  turned 
to  his  friend  and  said,  "Doesn't  it  say  somewhere 
in  the  Bible  that  when  Adam  and  Eve  ate  the  apple 
they  became  aware  that  they  were  naked?"  "I  be- 
lieve so,"  the  friend  replied.  "Well,  isn't  it  about 
time  to  pass  the  apples  again?" 

No,  it  is  not  that  we  do  not  give  attention  to  ex- 
ternals ;  but  Jesus  Christ  says,  "You  ought  to  cleanse 
the  inside  of  the  cup."  Of  what  good  to  society  are 
silk  dresses  and  furs  and  powder  and  perfume  and 
baths  if  there  is  that  corrpution  within  the  character 
that  sooner  or  later  find  expression  in  action? 

Paul,  you  were  right.  Jesus,  you  were  right.  We 
ought  to  give  attention  to  the  inside  of  the  cup. 

WHAT  A  LAWYER  SAID 

Let  us  hear  also  from  a  lawyer.  An  account  of  a 
speech  by  James  M.  Beck,  solicitor  general  of  the 
United  States,  before  the  American  Bar  Association, 
August  31  of  this  year,  is  as  follows:  "A  spirit  of 
lawlessness  always  has  existed,  Mr.  Beck  said,  but 
cited  the  prevalence  of  burglaries,  holdups,  theft, 
murder,  and  graft,  to  show  recent  growth  of  lawless- 


346  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

ness."  Then  he  is  quoted  directly  as  follows:  "Ac- 
companying the  indisposition  to  work  has  been  a  mad 
desire  for  pleasure,  such  as  has  not  been  within  the 
memory  of  living  man.  Man  has  danced  upon  the 
verge  of  an  abyss.  .  .  ." — Kansas  City  Star,  August 
31,  1921. 

WHAT    AN    EDUCATOR    SAID 

Let  us  now  hear  from  an  educator.  Dean  Fred- 
erick S.  Jones,  of  Yale  University,  in  his  commence- 
ment address  last  year,  as  reported  in  the  New  York 
World,  and  in  the  Literary  Digest  for  July  20,  1920, 
said,  "It  is  a  more  subtle  influence,  I  believe,  that  is 
bringing  about  the  decay  of  the  national  conscience. 
It  is  the  acquiescence  of  parents  to  the  loosening 
standards  of  morality.  In  that  fact  we  face  a  dan- 
gerous and  terrifying  progression.  The  children  of 
to-day  are  the  parents  of  to-morrow.  Will  they  in 
turn  acquiesce  to  continually  lowering  standards? 
What  will  then  be  the  result?  So-called  modern 
'liberty'  is  fast  approaching  license.  It  seems  to  me 
at  times  that  the  very  core  of  our  civilization  is  at 
stake.  The  crazy  seeking  after  gayety,  the  rush  of 
social  activity,  the  liberty  between  man  and  woman, 
increase  in  dishonesty,  and  in  all  forms  of  crime  and 
nervous  disease — these  are  not  confined  to  our  youth 
or  our  college  towns,  to  our  cities,  or  to  any  one  class 

of  society.  They  are  nation-wide  and  world-wide 

The  morals  of  the  college  man  have,  I  think,  been 
in  the  past  well  above  the  average.  I  believe  this 
still  to  be  true.  That  does  not  argue  well  for  the 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup  347 

morals  of  the  rest  of  the  country.  We  are  approach- 
ing a  moral  crisis,  nor  do  I  think  we  can  avoid  it  by 
education." 

WHAT    A    CHURCH    MAN    SAID 

A  prominent  church  man  of  world  repute,  Bishop 
Nicholai  of  Serbia,  is  reported  by  the  Des  Moines 
Evening  Tribune,  March  14,  1921,  as  having  said  in 
that  city,  "Of  course,  it  was  expected  that  after  the 
war  would  come  reaction  from  the  years  of  glory 
and  self-sacrifice,  but  none  expected  such  corruption 
as  obtrudes  its  loathsome  head.  The  moral  weakness 
of  Europe  to-day  is  far  more  definite  than  her  ma- 
terial weakness.  Destruction  may  have  stopped,  but 
construction  has  not  yet  begun.  You  have  heard  the 
history  of  the  end  of  Babylon,  of  the  old  Greece,  of 
Pompeii  and  ancient  Rome?  Well,  you  can  read  the 
signs  of  a  dying  empire  on  the  bodies  of  the  Euro- 
pean state  to-day." 

WHAT  A  HISTORIAN  SAID 

H.  G.  Wells,  who  is  known  all  over  the  world  as  a 
novelist,  and  of  late  years  as  a  historian,  says,  "This 
world  of  mankind  to-day  seems  to  me  to  be  a  very 
sinister  and  dreadful  world.  It  has  come  to  this — 
that  I  open  my  newspaper  every  morning  with  a 
sinking  heart,  and  usually  I  find  little  to  console  me. 
Every  day  there  is  a  new  tale  of  chilly  bloodshed. 
Every  day  I  read  of  anger  and  hate  and  oppression 
and  misery  and  want — stupid  anger  and  oppression, 
needless  misery  and  want — the  insult  and  suspicions 
of  ignorant  men  and  the  insane  and  horrible  self- 


348  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

satisfaction  of  the  well-to-do.  It  is  a  vile  world,  be- 
cause it  is  an  undereducated  world,  unreasonable, 
suspicious,  base,  and  ferocious/' — Kansas  City  Star, 
July  10,  1921. 

What  an  awful  arraignment,  equaled  only  by  Paul 
of  old! 

We  might  go  on  multiplying  these  statements  from 
men  of  experience  and  of  observation,  but  surely 
the  more  casual  observer  has  formed  some  opinion 
of  the  state  of  society.  And  without  doubt  there 
is  a  decline  in  morals,  which  comes  as  an  inevitable 
result  of  a  decline  in  religion. 

How  many  of  the  young  people  of  the  coming  gen- 
eration are  receiving  any  sort  of  religious  education  ? 
The  percentage  must  be  very  small.  Where  do  they 
spend  their  Sundays?  At  the  ball  park,  the  dance 
hall,  the  beach,  the  movies.  Religion  is  at  the  very 
basis  of  morality  and  is  a  safeguard  of  the  human 
race,  yet  it  is  practically  neglected.  No  wonder  there 
follows  a  corresponding  decline  in  morals. 

THE  INDIVIDUAL 

Let  us  now  consider  the  application  of  our  text 
to  the  individual.  This  is  the  most  important,  and 
is  reserved  to  the  last  because  the  individual  is  the 
unit  of  which  the  community  and  the  nation  at  large 
is  composed,  and  is  most  vital  to  us  because  the  in- 
dividual is  the  unit  that  goes  to  make  up  the  church. 
Individuals  are  the  atoms  of  which  the  church  is 
made.  You  cannot  make  a  gold  piece  out  of  brass 
atoms.  We  are  told  that  Zion  is  the  pure  in  heart. 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup  349 

You  cannot  make  Zion  out  of  people  who  are  not 
pure  in  heart.  Zion  exists  for  the  people,  not  the 
people  for  Zion ;  and  Zion  will  never  exist  unless  there 
is  a  people  worthy  of  Zion. 

Jesus  said,  "Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart,  for 
they  shall  see  God."  I  do  not  blame  our  young  peo- 
ple for  seeking  pleasure  if  they  will  go  where  plea- 
sure is  found.  I  will  tell  you  the  greatest  pleasure 
a  man  can  have,  and  that  is  to  be  able  to  look  into 
the  faces  of  all  men  and  women,  conscious  that  there 
is  nothing  back  here  behind  the  windows  of  the  soul 
that  needs  covering  up.  If  there  is  any  greater 
happiness  than  that,  it  is  to  be  able  to  kneel  down 
at  your  bed  at  night  conscious  that  there  is  nothing 
in  your  life  that  God  will  look  upon  with  disfavor. 

You — father  and  mother — who  have  a  boy,  you 
want  that  boy  to  grow  up  to  be  a  good  and  noble  man, 
don't  you?  Why,  of  course  you  do.  That  is  the 
thing  that  you  pray  for.  Let  me  ask  you,  Why  don't 
you  put  that  boy  in  a  brick  house  with  iron  bars 
over  the  windows  and  doors,  and  shut  him  in  so 
that  he  cannot  get  out?  You  could  keep  him  away 
from  all  temptations  and  he  would  have  to  grow 
up  a  good  man.  But  you  say,  "I  don't  want  a  pris- 
oner; I  want  a  man  to  grow  up  to  bear  my  name." 

God  is  just  like  you.  That  is  why  he  gives  us  our 
free  moral  agency.  He  does  not  want  slaves  or 
prisoners.  He  wants  men  and  women  who  do  not 
sin,  not  because  they  cannot  sin,  but  because  they 
love  righteousness  and.  hate  iniquity.  And  your 


350  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

boy  will  get  through  life  honorably  if  he  has  a  clean 
heart.  That  is  more  efficacious  than  brick  walls  in 
protecting  him  against  temptations  and  the  devices 
of  the  Devil.  "Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart;  for 
they  shall  see  God." 

I  believe  that  man  ought  to  be  the  greatest  reve- 
lation of  God's  goodness.  Elder  T.  W.  Williams  once 
said  that  four  times  he  had  seen  God.  He  had  seen 
him  on  the  seashore ;  he  had  seen  him  in  the  moun- 
tains ;  he  had  seen  him  in  the  desert ;  and,  last  of  all, 
he  had  seen  him  at  Niagara  Falls.  I  can  say  that 
four  times  I  have  perceived  God ;  at  the  seaside ;  and 
in  the  mountains ;  in  the  solitude  of  the  desert ;  and 
at  Niagara  Falls.  But  five  times  I  have  seen  him,  be- 
cause I  have  seen  him  again  in  the  transformation  of 
the  lives  and  characters  of  men  and  women  under 
the  operation  of  his  gospel.  That  to  me  is  the  great- 
est revelation  of  the  power  of  God.  The  greatest 
miracle  that  Jesus  Christ  wrought  was  not  giving 
sight  to  the  blind,  or  even  causing  the  very  dead  to 
rise  up  and  walk.  It  was  transforming  the  character 
of  Peter  and  Mary  Magdalene  and  other  profane  and 
vile  men  and  women  who  came  under  the  influence 
of  his  gospel.  I  thank  God  that  miracle  is  being 
wrought  to-day,  because  it  is  the  province  of  the  gos- 
pel of  Jesus  Christ  to  transform  the  lives  of  men  and 
women  and  to  help  them  to  cleanse  the  inside  of 
the  cup. 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup  351 

A  CHANGE  FROM   THE  INSIDE  OUT 

I  believe  that  religion  should  make  a  most  radical 
change  in  the  lives  of  men.  I  think  it  ought  to  be  a 
practical  change.  It  ought  to  be  manifested  first 
of  all  in  their  homes.  If  a  man  does  not  live  his 
religion  in  his  home  I  do  not  want  him  to  talk  about 
it  outside  of  his  home.  One  time  an  old  sister  in 
Lamoni  said  she  wished  her  husband  would  obey  the 
gospel.  The  old  man  said,  "I  do  not  see  why  she 
said  that.  I  have  been  baptized  four  times  already." 
True,  he  had  been  baptized  four  times,  but  had  never 
obeyed  the  gospel.  She  knew,  for  she  lived  with  him. 

I  think  our  religion  ought  to  make  a  difference  in 
our  work  in  the  shop,  in  the  mine,  or  on  the  f  arm.  A 
Latter  Day  Saint's  word  ought  to  be  just  as  good  as 
his  bond. 

Religion  ought  to  make  a  most  radical  change  in 
the  life  of  the  man.  And  it  begins  on  the  inside  and 
works  out.  The  inner  man  is  the  important  thing; 
and  when  he  is  transformed,  sooner  or  later  the 
transformation  will  shine  through  the  outer  man. 

I  do  not  blame  young  men  for  wanting  to  look  well. 
I  do  not  blame  our  women  for  wishing  to  beautify 
themselves.  God  loves  beautiful  things.  Look  at  the 
pains  he  takes  to  beautify  a  violet  in  the  woods  where 
no  one  may  see  it,  or  the  inside  of  a  shell  far  under 
the  sea.  But  the  way  to  achieve  beauty  is  through 
character.  You  cannot  buy  beauty  in  the  drug  store, 


352  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

and  put  it  on  with  a  powder  puff.  You  have  to  de- 
velop it  within  yourself.  The  beauty  of  the  violet 
comes  from  within. 

TWO  LINCOLN   STORIES 

I  wish  now  to  tell  two  stories  about  Abraham 
Lincoln.  They  say  that  when  he  was  first  elected 
and  went  to  the  White  House  at  Washington,  he  was 
the  laughing  stock  of  polite  society  at  the  Capital,  he 
'was  so  homely,  so  awkward,  and  so  poorly  dressed. 
But  four  years  of  the  storm  and  earthquake  of  civil 
war  had  not  passed  away  before  people  ceased  to 
laugh  behind  his  back.  They  began  to  see  the  inner 
Lincoln.  These  are  the  two  stories : 

It  is  said  that  upon  one  occasion  Lincoln  was  rid- 
ing in  the  forest  when  he  came  upon  an  eccentric 
man  who,  pointing  a  pistol  at  him,  said,  "Halt!  Pre- 
pare to  die.  I  made  a  vow  one  time  that  if  ever  I  met 
a  homelier  man  than  myself  I  would  shoot  him." 
Lincoln  sat  his  horse  a  moment  and  looked  the  fellow 
over  from  top  to  toe;  then  in  his  slow  way,  said, 
"Well,  fire  away.  If  I  am  homelier  than  you  are  I 
don't  care  to  live." 

That  man  saw  the  outer  Lincoln.  But  there  came 
to  the  White  House  one  day  an  old  mother  whose  son 
had  been  sentenced  to  die.  She  came  pleading  with 
the  secretaries,  who  would  not  let  her  in  to  see  the 
President.  But  finally  she  forced  her  way  in'  and 
found  Lincoln  at  his  desk.  She  told  the  President 
how  her  boy  was  only  eighteen  years  of  age.  He  had 
taken  the  place  of  a  sick  comrade  one  night  and  the 


The  Inside  of  the  Cup  353 

next  night  he  had  to  go  on  duty  as  a  picket,  and  so 
went  to  sleep.  And  now  he  was  to  die.  When  Lin- 
coln heard  the  story  he  seized  a  pen  and  wrote  one 
more  of  those  pardons  which  his  secretaries  hated  so 
much.  And  the  mother  receiving  the  pardon  fell  at 
his  feet  and  bathed  the  ungainly  hands  of  Father 
Abraham  with  her  tears,  and  said,  "Mr.  President, 
they  told  me  you  were  a  homely  man,  but  yours  is 
the  most  beautiful  face  I  ever  looked  upon."  She 
saw  the  inner  Lincoln  that  sanctified  the  outer  Lin- 
coln. To-day  his  likeness  is  reproduced  in  bronze 
and  set  up  in  Paris,  Washington,  London,  and  in 
many  of  the  capitals  of  the  world,  for  men  to  look 
upon ;  and  we  would  not  change  one  line  of  that  rug- 
ged countenance. 

Isaiah  tells  us  concerning  Jesus  that  "When  we 
shall  see  him  there  is  no  beauty  in  him  that  we 
should  desire  him."  When  the  Jews  saw  him  hang- 
ing on  the  cross,  weary,  sweaty,  dusty,  bloody, 
agonized,  to  them  there  was  nothing  beautiful  about 
him.  They  saw  only  the  outer  Christ;  but  his  dis- 
ciples and  all  who  have  seen  the  inner  Christ  are 
able  to  sing,  "He's  the  lily  of  the  valley,  the  bright 
and  morning  star;  he's  the  fairest  of  ten  thousand 
to  my  soul." 

I  pray  that  God  may  help  us  to  cleanse  the  inside 
of  the  cup,  that  the  beauty  of  our  lives  may  shine 
forth  as  did  the  life  of  Jesus,  our  Lord  and  Savior. 


12 


THE   BARGAIN   COUNTER   OF   LIFE 

(An  address  to  the  young  people  at  the  Stone  Church  at 
Independence,  Tuesday  evening,  August  6,  1921.) 

YOU  young  people  stand  at  the  bargain  counter 
of  life.     Who  are  you  going  to  do  business 
with?     What  will  you  get  in  exchange  for 
that  which  you  have  to  offer?    Do  you  hold  your- 
selves high  as  men  and  women  should,  or  are  you  pre- 
pared to  barter  yourselves  for  a  mess  of  pottage,  and 
very  bitter  pottage,  too,  as  some  are  doing  to-day? 
There  is  a  poem  which  says : 

"I  bargained  with  life  for  a  penny, 

And  life  would  pay  no  more, 
However  I  begged  at  evening 
When  I  counted  my  scanty  store. 

"For  Life  is  just  an  employer. 
He  gives  you  what  you  ask. 
But  once  you  have  set  the  wages, 
Why,  you  must  bear  the  task. 

"I  worked  for  a  menial  hire, 
Only  to  learn,  dismayed, 
That  any  wage  I  had  asked  of  Life, 
Life  would  have  paid." 

It  seems  to  me  that  many  people  are  holding  them- 
selves too  cheaply.  They  remind  me  of  the  story  you 
may  have  heard  about  the  woman  who  awoke  in  the 
night,  weeping  bitterly.  Her  husband  inquired  why 

354 


The  Bargain  Counter  of  Life  355 

she  was  weeping  and  she  replied,  "I  dreamed  that  I 
was  in  a  market  where  husbands  were  for  sale. 
There  were  some  very  fine  ones  for  five  thousand  dol- 
lars each,  and  some  very  good  looking  ones  as  low 
as  five  hundred  dollars  each."  The  husband  then 
said,  "I  don't  see  anything  in  that  to  weep  about.  Did 
you  see  any  there  who  looked  like  me  ?"  The  woman 
then  again  began  to  weep  and  replied,  "That  is  just 
the  trouble.  There  were  hundreds  and  hundreds  of 
them  just  like  you.  They  were  done  up  in  bunches 
like  asparagus  and  sold  for  fifteen  cents  a  dozen."  I 
think  some  woman  must  have  made  up  that  dream 
to  make  us  men  feel  cheap.  Yet  it  is  a  fact  that  some 
men  are  going  for  about  that  price,  and  if  that  is  all 
they  ask  for  themselves,  perhaps  that  is  all  they  are 
worth. 

You  have  a  splendid  inheritance.  It  is  beyond 
value.  No  monetary  valuation  could  be  placed  upon 
it.  You  have  the  inheritance  of  youth.  You  do  not 
perhaps  realize  now  all  its  value.  I  recall  a  certain 
cartoon.  The  first  picture  represented  a  youth 
sitting  with  his  chin  in  his  hand,  looking  into  the 
future.  He  said,  "I  will  be  happy  then."  The  second 
represented  an  old  man,  with  his  chin  upon  his  staff, 
looking  into  the  past,  saying,  "I  was  happy  then." 
With  your  youth  you  have  the  natural  accompani- 
ment of  energy,  ambition,  and  enthusiasm. 

Many  solicitors  stand  at  the  bargain  counter  of 
life,  eager  to  do  business  with  you  and  take  from  you 
that  which  you  have  to  offer.  There  are,  for  instance, 


356  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

many  secret  orders  and  societies;  there  also  is  the 
dance  hall,  the  card  table,  and  low  dives  and  high 
dives  of  all  kinds.  Every  kind  of  entertainment  and 
dissipation,  from  the  highest  to  the  very  lowest  and 
most  debased  that  debauched  human  minds  can  con- 
ceive of,  is  eager  and  anxious  to  take  all  of  your  sur- 
plus time  and  all  of  your  surplus  energy,  all  of  the 
splendid  abilities  of  your  youth,  and  in  the  end  give 
you  nothing  in  exchange  but  vain  regret.  What  sort 
of  a  bargain  do  you  propose  to  drive  at  the  bargain 
counter  of  life  ?  Time,  the  inveterate  thief,  will  take 
away  these  things  that  you  have,  of  such  inestimable 
worth.  You  cannot  eat  your  cake  and  keep  it.  You 
may  as  well  make  your  bargain  now,  while  you  may. 
If  you  do  not  get  out  of  these  things  what  they  are 
worth,  eventually  time  will  take  them  away  from  you 
as  the  one  talent  was  taken  away  from  the  man  who 
hid  it  in  a  napkin  and  refused  to  put  it  to  service. 

Among  other  institutions,  the  church  comes  to  the 
bargain  counter  of  life  desirous  to  do  business  with 
you.  What  has  the  church  for  you  ?  What  have  you 
for  the  church?  First  of  all,  the  church  has  salva- 
tion for  you  through  the  atonement  of  Christ  and  the 
plan  of  life  and  salvation  laid  down  by  him.  I  do 
not  refer  alone  to  some  theoretical  salvation  from  a 
theological  hell  of  fire  and  brimstone  and  in  a  theo- 
logical heaven  where  we  will  forever  play  upon  harps. 
I  pity  the  neighbors  when  I  begin  to  play  upon  my 
harp.  I  refer  also  to  salvation  here  and  now.  If  you 
do  not  know  what  that  means,  look  around  you  and 


The  Bargain  Counter  of  Life  357 

see  the  wreck  and  ruin  that  men  and  women  and  boys 
and  girls  are  making  of  their  lives.  Men  do  not  need 
to  die  to  go  to  hell.  There  are  many  living  men  to- 
day who  carry  their  hell  around  with  them.  They 
have  an  individual  hell.  The  church  by  its  ideals, 
philosophy  of  life,  and  spiritual  influence  will  save 
you  from  these  things,  and  save  you  to  all  that  is 
good  and  noble. 

In  the  second  place,  the  church  has  communion  to 
offer  you,  that  communion  and  fellowship  that  we 
enjoyed  Sunday  morning  at  the  sacramental  service 
—that  fellowship  with  God  on  the  one  hand  and  man 
on  the  other  so  beautifully  set  forth  in  the  hymn 
that  we  sing,  "Blest  be  the  tie  that  binds."  You 
will  appreciate  this  fellowship  more  and  more  as  time 
goes  by-  That  is  the  beauty  of  the  things  that  the 
church  has  to  offer  you;  time  does  not  mar  or  di- 
minish, but  rather  makes  them  better. 

The  church  has,  also,  to  offer  you  service.  First, 
its  interpretation  of  service  and  ideal  of  service 
which  cannot  be  found  elsewhere;  and  then,  the 
many  fields  of  service,  increasing  in  number,  that  are 
opening  up  before  you.  These  may  include  some  very, 
very  important  missions,  or  some  apparently  unim- 
portant tasks  in  obscure  branches  or  Sunday  school 
or  Religio  meetings.  A  man  need  not  necessarily  be 
proud  of  ihe  elevation  of  the  office  that  he  occupies. 
He  should  be  proud  of  the  way  in  which  he  is  doing 
his  work,  whether  it  be  great  or  small. 

In  the  end,  of  course,  your  abilities,  your  devotion, 


358 The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

and  your  preparation  will  determine  the  importance 
and  extent  of  the  field  that  you  will  occupy. 

What  have  you  to  give  the  church?  You  have  your- 
selves, and  the  church  asks  nothing  less.  We  are 
commanded  to  love  God  with  all  our  heart,  mind, 
strength,  and  soul.  The  heart  is  the  seat  of  the 
emotions,  supposedly;  the  mind  is  the  seat  of  in- 
telligence; the  soul  is  the  whole  man.  So  all  that 
you  have  to  offer  of  service  of  body  or  mind  or  heart 
should  be  at  the  disposal  of  God  in  the  interests  of 
his  church.  And  you  need  not  fear  that  you  will  not 
find  work  to  do  if  you  make  yourself  ready  in  this 
spirit.  I  was  a  member  of  the  old  Students'  Society 
in  Lamoni  which  was  the  pioneer  of  all  young  peo< 
pie's  organizations  in  this  church.  Out  of  it  grew 
Zion's  Religio-Literary  Society.  The  motto  of  that 
society  was,  "Get  thy  spindle  and  thy  distaff  ready, 
and  God  will  send  thee  flax."  I  can  testify  that 
every  member  of  that  society  who  got  his  distaff  and 
his  spindle  ready  found  all  the  flax  coming  to  his 
hand  that  he  was  able  to  spin.  I  am  glad  to  note  the 
way  in  which  the  young  people  are  coming  forward 
all  over  the  church  to  line  themselves  up  with  the 
church  and  take  their  place  and  do  their  part.  This 
has  been  particularly  noticeable  at  the  various  re- 
unions that  I  have  attended  of  late  years,  also  in 
the  revival  services  of  the  young  people  during  the 
past  winter. 

I  wish  to  read  a  part  of  a  letter  that  came  to  the 
desk  of  the  Presidency  this  very  day,  as  it  is  typical 


The  Bargain  Counter  of  Life  359 

of  the  spirit  that  is  moving  upon  our  young  people. 
This  letter  is  from  a  young  man  who  has  spent  two 
years  in  Graceland  College,  one  of  them  in  the  class 
of  religious  education.  He  is  a  young  man,  probably 
more  than  six  feet  tall,  and  big  and  strong  in  pro- 
portion. He  was  a  star  football  player  and  the  best 
baseball  pitcher  in  our  college  athletics.  He  is  a  man 
all  over  and  his  reaction  to  this  question  of  what  the 
church  has  to  give  and  that  which  he  has  to  give  to 
the  church  at  the  bargain  counter  of  life  is  typical 
of  the  best  young  manhood  of  the  church.  He  is  now 
in  the  mission  field  and  writes  as  follows : 

"I  wish  briefly  to  express  my  appreciation  of  what 
the  church  has  done  for  me.  I  was  permitted  to  at- 
tend Graceland  for  two  years,  which  privilege  I  es- 
teem as  one  of  the  most  valuable  in  my  life.  First, 
I  went  as  a  member  of  the  religious  education  class 
and  after  that  as  a  college  student.  I  hold  that  the 
good  I  received  while  there  is  far  beyond  my  power 
to  repay.  The  reason  I  write  now  is  that  I  wish  to 
explain  the  course  I  decided  to  take  last  spring.  If  I 
understand  correctly  I  had  the  chance  to  attend  col- 
lege again  this  fall.  This  I  refused  to  do,  not  that  I 
do  not  love  Graceland  and  her  work,  but  because  I 
felt  that  it  was  time  for  me  to  get  into  the  harness 
and  to  develop  along  missionary  experience  lines 
along  with  the  others. 

"My  experiences  at  Graceland  cause  me  to  love  the 
church  and  its  work  more  than  I  could  have  other- 
wise. I  gained  a  newer,  a  broader,  and  a  grander 


360  .  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

outlook  on  the  work  of  Zion.  My  ideas  of  consecra- 
tion and  devotion  to  the  teachings  of  the  church 
were  made  deeper  and  more  lasting.  For  this  reason 
I  have  determined  to  labor  in  the  missionary  work 
without  reservation.  I  have  enjoyed  the  work  this 
summer  and  I  hope  to  continue  faithful  to  my  duty 
until  I  am  done-" 

My  sympathy  is  with  you  young  people  in  all  of 
your  legitimate  activities;  even  in  your  recreation 
and  play.  By  learning  to  play  together  now  you  will 
learn  to  work  together,  and  the  experiences  of  fellow- 
ship therein  will  be  very  valuable  to  you.  But  I  must 
again  impress  upon  your  minds  that  you  have  come 
to  a  critical  time  in  life  and  you  have  reached  that 
period  at  a  critical  time  in  the  world's  history.  Never 
before  were  there  so  many  mean  and  vicious  forces  to 
appeal  to  you  for  your  patronage;  but  it  is  equally 
true  that  never  before  was  God's  appeal  stronger, 
clearer,  or  more  powerful.  I  hope  that  divine  wis- 
dom will  aid  you  to  make  a  good,  wise,  and  profitable 
bargain  at  the  bargain  counter  of  life. 


TWO  PHILOSOPHIES  OF  LIFE 

(Sermon  at  the  Stone  Church,  Independence,  Missouri, 
Sunday  evening,  October  30,  1921.) 

MY  THEME  to-night  is,  "Two  philosophies  of 
life  in  contrast."    The  worldly  philosophy  is 
stated  in  Luke  12: 19:  'Take  thine  ease,  eat, 
drink,  and  be  merry/'  and  the  context  adds,  "for  to- 
morrow we  die."    The  philosophy  of  Christ  is  stated 
in  the  combination  of  two  texts,  "Quit  yourselves  like 
men,  be  strong" ;  and,  "Seek  ye  first  to  build  up  the 
kingdom  of  God  and  to  establish  his  righteousness." 
These  texts  are  found  in  1  Corinthians  16:  13,  and 
in  Matthew  6 :  33. 

These  statements  are  in  striking  contrast,  even  be- 
fore they  are  analyzed ;  and  you  will  notice  that  they 
are  philosophies  in  essence,  either  of  them  powerful 
enough  to  transform  the  lives-  of  individuals,  of  na- 
tions, or  of  the  entire  race. 

I  need  but  to  mention  the  very  familiar  illustration 
of  the  fall  of  Rome.  There  was  a  time  when  Rome 
ruled  the  world.  Roman  citizens  were  great  soldiers, 
great  senators,  and  great  lawyers.  Our  English  com- 
mon law  is  inherited  from  Rome,  and  most  of  their 
principles  were  very  well  thought  out.  But  there 
came  a  day  when  Roman  men  and  women  began  to 
say  to  themselves,  "What  is  the  use  of  this  unending 
toil,  this  stern  self-denial  and  discipline?  Come,  let 

361 


362  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

us  take  our  ease,  eat,  drink,  and  be  merry."  And  no 
one  dare  deny  that  they  "worked  at  their  philoso- 
phy." The  decline  and  fall  of  Rome  was  so  swift  and 
terrible  that  it  is  yet  a  marvel  of  history. 

THE    TREND    OF    THE    RACE 

That  which  happened  to  a  nation  may  happen  to 
an  individual.  It  may  even  happen  to  the  race  as  a 
whole.  I  have  been  reading  a  book  called,  The  Trend 
of  the  Race,  by  Doctor  Samuel  J.  Holmes,  of  Berke- 
ley. He  is  a  believer  in  evolution,  and  while  he  be- 
lieves that  man  has  worked  his  way  up  through  very 
long  periods  of  hard  toil,  he  says  that  man  may  de- 
generate and  go  down  in  a  very  short  time;  and  he 
raises  the  question,  Has  that  decline  already  begun  ? 
He  suggests  that  in  the  past  when  one  civilization 
fell  because  of  its  inherent  vices,  there  was  always  a 
great  reserve  of  unspoiled  barbarians  from  which  to 
build  up  another  civilization.  But  now  civilization 
has  spread  practically  over  the  entire  world,  all  na- 
tions being  bound  together  in  one  common  destiny; 
so,  if  this  civilization  fails  and  goes  down,  it  will  be, 
not  a  national,  but  a  racial  calamity.  If  so,  it  will 
be  because  men  accept  the  philosophy  of  self-indulg- 
ence rather  than  the  philosophy  of  self -development. 

THE   WORLDLY    PHILOSOPHY 

Let  us  consider  first  of  all  this  worldly  philosophy. 
The  modern  rendition  is  something  like  this,  "Come 
on,  you  only  live  once  and  you  will  be  dead  a  long 
time;  you  may  as  well  have  a  good  time  while  you 


Two  Philosophies  of  Life  363 

are  at  it" — which  philosophy  has  more  apostles  than 
Christ  ever  ordained  and  sent  out  to  preach  his 
gospel. 

We  might  inquire  to-night,  What  institutions  are 
the  chief  proponents  of  this  worldly  philosophy? 
Undoubtedly  you  will  admit  that  one  of  them  is  the 
saloon,  notorious  for  its  appeal  to  gluttoning  and 
drunkenness. 

With  the  saloon  is  associated  its  sister  evils:  the 
social  evil,  or  commercialized  immorality,  and  the 
very  ancient  institution  of  gambling  in  all  its  forms. 

THE    DANCE    HALL 

I  come  next  to  institutions  concerning  which  there 
may  be  some  argument  and  some  room  for  differ- 
ences of  opinion  honestly  held — the  dance  hall  and 
the  theater.  I  believe  that  the  modern  dance,  par- 
ticularly the  public  dance,  is  thoroughly  imbued  with 
this  spirit  of  worldly  philosophy.  In  speaking  along 
this  line  I  do  not  believe  that  we  should  upbraid,  or 
that  we  should  denounce,  or  that  we  should  be  too 
rigorous  in  our  attitude  towards  the  young  people; 
but  I  must  say  to-night  the  things  that  seem  .to  me 
to  be  true,  and  you  are  here  to  weigh  them  and  think 
them  over  and  if  they  appear  to  your  intelligence  as 
true  to  accept  them,  but  if  they  do  not  appeal  to  your 
intelligence  as  being  logical,  you  are  perfectly  free 
to  reject  them.  Every  man  is  master  of  his  own 
destiny. 

I  know  that  some  people  will  argue  that  the  dance 
may  be  taken  into  a  proper  environment  and  under 


364  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

proper  supervision,  and  it  will  be  all  right.  The 
trouble  with  that  argument  is  that  the  modern  dance 
is  inherently  wrong  and  so  cannot  be  made  right  by  a 
change  of  environment  or  supervision.  It  is  wrong 
first,  because  of  its  deadly  waste  of  time  and  energy 
and  health  which  are  so  valuable  to  you  young  people 
in  your  years  of  preparation ;  but  more  seriously,  it 
is  fundamentally  wrong  because  it  brings  men  and 
women  together  in  spiritual  and  physical  contacts 
which  are  wrong  and  cannot  be  anything  but  harm- 
ful. 

Now,  it  is  conceivable  that  you  might  go  into  the 
forest  around  Independence  and  catch  the  escaped 
black  leopard  which  has  terrorized  the  country  for 
some  weeks  past.  You  might  take  it  into  your  home, 
put  a  pink  ribbon  around  its  neck,  and  call  it  a  pussy 
cat,  and  you  might  "get  by  with  it";  but  I  do  not 
think  you  would,  because  there  is  something  funda- 
mentally wrong.  The  temper  and  temperament  of 
the  leopard  would  not  fit  into  your  home.  And  it 
does  not  seem  to  me  that  the  modern  dance  can  be 
taken  into  the  Latter  Day  Saint  home  without  being 
considered  as  a  doubtful  experiment,  to  say  the  least. 

I  know  that  ministers  are  considered  to  be  preju- 
diced along  this  line,  and  perhaps  conscience-bound 
if  not  hide-bound,  so  I  will  read  from  the  pen  of  a 
physician,  Doctor  James  Foster  Scott,  graduate  of 
Oxford  and  Edinburgh  and  one  time  vice  president 
of  the  Medical  Association  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia, whose  book  I  have  in  my  library.  He  says : 


Two  Philosophies  of  Life  365 

"There  is  a  habit  of  laughing  at  ministers  of  the 
gospel  who  thunder  out  denunciations  against  danc- 
ing, but  from  a  purely  medical  standpoint  the  cus- 
toms of  the  ballroom  are  perfectly  indefensible.  .  .  . 
In  opposing  such  a  popular  institution  we  tread  on 
delicate  ground  indeed,  so  that  we  may  anticipate  the 
strongest  disapproval  from  many  quarters  unless  the 
subject  is  attentively  analyzed.  But  from  the  well- 
informed  physician,  the  humanitarian,  the  student  of 
the  times,  and  from  the  experienced  man  of  the 
world,  we  confidently  expect  a  unanimous  verdict  of 
approval.  .  .  .  This  is  no  mere  matter  of  opinion, 
but  an  incontrovertible  fact;  and  those  are  blind  in- 
deed who  cannot  see  that  the  modern  ball,  with  every 
feature  in  it  sensuous  and  seductive,  is  what  we  call 
a  secondary  sexual  love  feast,  and  that  its  present 
tendency  is  not  in  the  direction  of  purity  or  a  high 
civilization." — The  Sexual  Instinct,  pp.  148,  156. 

It  is  possible  that  the  church  was  not  so  far  wrong 
when  it  adopted  General  Conference  Resolution 
Number  377,  "Resolved,  That  we  consider  the  prac- 
tice of  dancing  and  card  playing  as  unbecoming  true 
Christians,  and  should  be  avoided  by  all  Saints." 

THE    QUESTION    OF    THE    THEATER 

When  we  come  to  the  question  of  the  theater  we 
approach  a  subject  where  it  seems  to  me  the  argu- 
ment is  a  little  different.  The  drama  is  not  inher- 
ently bad;  neither  the  motion  picture  show.  They 
are  neither  moral  nor  immoral;  they  are  unmoral. 
Their  effect  upon  the  community  depends  upon  the 


366 The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

message  which  they  are  made  to  carry.  Appealing 
as  the  drama  does  to  profound  emotions  through 
tragedy,  romance,  and  comedy,  it  is  quite  capable  of 
carrying  a  great  message.  But  producers  to-day  as 
a  rule  are  not  at  all  interested  in  the  message  con- 
veyed. They  are  solely  concerned  with  the  financial 
returns.  The  stage  and  the  motion  picture  have  been 
commercialized,  and  in  order  to  get  the  most  money 
from  the  exhibition,  they  appeal  to  baser  passions 
that  will  bring  men  and  women  to  them  as  patrons. 
A  clean  show  in  a  proper  place  may  be  all  right,  but 
the  fact  remains  that  possibly  ninety  per  cent  of  the 
exhibitions  are  an  entire  and  perhaps  a  dreary  waste 
of  the  time,  money,  and  energy  of  their  patrons. 
Possibly  seventy-five  per  cent  of  them  are  bad,  in 
that  somewhere  they  appeal  to  that  which  is  bad  in 
human  nature.  I  noticed  an  Associated  Press  dis- 
patch which  said  that  in  the  Parisian  theaters  ac- 
tresses are  leaving  off  their  already  too  filmy 
draperies,  and  appearing  clothed  only  in  their  person- 
alities. The  stage  all  the  time  crowds  the  limits  of 
decency  so  far  as  public  opinion  will  permit  it  to  do 
so.  I  might  again  quote  from  Doctor  James  Foster 
Scott  on  this  subject: 

"The  modern  stage  is  an  important  factor  in  de- 
basing public  opinion  and  sexually  overstimulating 
the  passions  of  a  large  number  of  individuals.  .  .  . 
But  we  cannot  fail  to  notice  that  a  large  majority  of 
the  modern  plays  and  operas  have  as  essential  ele- 
ments of  the  plot,  or  of  the  costuming,  something 


Two  Philosophies  of  Life  367 

which  is  unmistakably  immoral,  salacious  and  erotic. 
In  fact,  there  is  a  glorification  of  vice,  and  modesty 
and  morality  are  put  to  shame.  Lasciviousness  and 
the  waving  of  enchanting  petticoats  have  largely  re- 
placed oratory  and  fine  acting.  .  .  .  The  modern 
stage  is  known  to  be  the  hotbed  of  impurity  and 
divorce,  and  the  actress  who  is  not  a  divorcee  or 
who  has  a  clean  reputation  is  the  exception." — Ibid., 
pp.  156,  157,  160. 

I  think  that  the  very  most  conservative  statement 
we  can  make  on  this  ground  is  that  we  ought  to  be 
careful,  and  that  indiscriminating  theater-going,  to 
"any  old  show,"  and  excessive  theater-going,  night 
after  night,  is  bad.  If  you  are  to  attend  a  show,  by 
all  means  select  a  clean  play  in  a  respectable  place. 

CHRIST'S  PHILOSOPHY  OF  LIFE 

The  worldly  philosophy  is  the  lazy  man's  philoso- 
phy, "Come,  let  us  take  our  ease."  It  is  the  glutton's 
philosophy,  "Let  us  eat."  It  is  the  inebriate's 
philosophy,  "Let  us  drink."  It  is  the  fool's  philos- 
ophy, "Let  us  be  merry,  for  to-morrow  we  die." 

In  contrast  to  that  philosophy  comes  the  philos- 
ophy of  Jesus  Christ,  which  is  a  philosophy  of  man- 
hood :  "Quit  yourselves  like  men,  be  strong."  If  the 
Star-spangled  Banner  when  it  passes  by  commands 
every  American  citizen  to  stand  up  and  uncover  his 
head,  the  Flag  of  Jesus  Christ  when  it  goes  by  says 
to  all  people,  "Stand  up  and  be  men." 

I  once  heard  a  story  of  a  boy  who  had  reached  his 


368  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

twenty-first  birthday  and  at  midnight  he  aroused  the 
people  of  the  house  by  shouting,  '  There's  a  man  in 
the  house!  There's  a  man  in  the  house!"  When 
father  and  mother,  brothers  and  sisters  appeared 
with  pistols  and  pokers,  they  discovered  that  he  was 
announcing  his  own  manhood.  My  young  brother, 
can  you  stand  up  and  say  to  the  world,  'There's  a 
man  in  this  house"?  Not  merely  a  male  creature 
twenty-one  years  old,  but  a  real  man,  ready  for  a 
man's  work  in  the  world.  Sister,  can  you  say  to  all 
the  world,  "There's  a  woman  in  this  house"  ?  Not  a 
fashion  plate  with  the  franchise,  but  a  real  woman, 
ready  and  willing  to  do  a  woman's  work  in  the  world. 

What  is  a  man's  work  and  what  is  a  woman's 
work?  I  think  some  of  the  fundamental  duties  of 
a  man  are  these:  to  prepare  himself  for  a  useful 
place  in  life ;  to  build,  maintain,  and  protect  a  home ; 
to  win  the  love  of  some  good  woman  to  whom  he  will 
be  as  true  as  the  needle  is  to  the  pole;  and  under 
normal  conditions,  with  God's  blessing,  to  rear  chil- 
dren to  succeed  him ;  to  be  an  honorable,  industrious, 
and  intelligent  citizen  of  the  church  and  state.  And 
woman's  duty  in  all  things  parallels  man's.  Each 
complements  the  other.  If  he  is  to  provide  the  home, 
she  is  to  keep  the  home.  If  he  is  to  be  the  bread 
earner,  she  is  to  be  the  bread  maker.  These  duties 
are  not  something  that  theologians  have  thought  out 
and  propounded.  They  are  biological  and  in  the  very 
nature  of  men  and  women  have  been  placed  on  them. 


Two  Philosophies  of  Life  369 

HOME    BUILDERS 

You  young  people  are  the  future  home  builders. 
There  is  no  question  that  the  world  faces  a  crisis. 
There  has  been  a  breaking  down  of  religion  and 
morals.  Statesmen,  as  well  as  religious  people, 
scientists,  and  educators  recognize  that  some  sort  of 
a  crisis  confronts  them  so  stupendous  and  confusing 
that  it  cannot  yet  be  analyzed.  But  it  is  here.  You 
are  to  be  the  future  home  builders.  The  home  safe- 
guards civilization.  You  are  to  lay  the  hearthstones 
and  rear  the  roof  trees  of  the  future.  You  cannot 
build  a  home,  you  cannot  build  a  family,  you  cannot 
build  a  life  on  the  worldly  philosophy  of  ease,  self- 
indulgence,  and  seeking  the  easiest  and  pleasantest 
way.  There  is  only  one  way  in  which  it  can  be 
done,  and  that  is  under  the  philosophy  of  Jesus 
Christ.  Quit  yourselves  like  men  and  women.  Be 
strong. 

If  this  is  the  philosophy  of  manhood  and  woman- 
hood, it  is  also  the  philosophy  of  construction.  "Seek 
ye  first  to  build  up  the  kingdom  of  God  and  to  estab- 
lish his  righteousness."  There  are  many  destructive 
elements  in  the  world  to-day,  but  the  philosophy  of 
Jesus  Christ  is  constructive,  "Seek  ye  first  to  build 
up  and  to  establish." 

A  PHILOSOPHY  OF  WORK 

It  is  the  philosophy  of  work.  Is  work  a  curse? 
There  has  been  a  mistaken  idea  in  the  world  that 
work  is  a  curse  that  God  pronounced  on  man  in  the 
garden  of  Eden.  Work  wasn't  the  curse,  excessive 


370  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

toil  was  the  curse.  It  was  intended  from  the  very 
beginning  that  man  should  work.  We  are  told  in  the 
opening  chapters  of  Genesis  that  God  set  man  in  the 
garden  to  dress  it  and  tend  it.  It  seems  to  be  the  will 
of  God  that  men  in  cooperation  with  hint  should  de- 
velop all  of  the  fruits  of  the  earth  as  well  as  the 
treasures  of  the  earth.  Go  into  the  forest  and  pick 
a  little,  hard,  bitter,  wild  crab  apple,  and  compare  it 
with  a  beautiful  Jonathan  apple  from  Oregon  and 
you  will  see  what  man  has  accomplished  working 
with  God.  Burbank  took  a  little  wild  daisy  and  with 
God  as  a  partner  he  worked  for  twenty-five  years  to 
produce  the  beautiful  Shasta  Daisy.  God  put  the 
potentialities  into  the  flower,  but  left  man  the  task 
to  develop  them. 

GATHERING  A  POUND  OF  HONEY 

Practically  all  living  creatures  work,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  one  class  that  I  will  mention  later.  Even 
the  beasts  of  prey  work.  If  you  were  compelled  to 
run  with  the  wolves,  from  five  to  fifty  miles  at  top 
speed  to  capture  your  supper,  you  would  think  you 
had  worked  for  it.  Even  the  insects  are  workers. 
The  ants  are  mining  engineers  and  were  before  Solo- 
mon, who  took  them  for  a  text :  "Go  to  the  ant,  thou 
sluggard."  Hornets  and  wasps  are  masons  and  paper- 
makers.  The  honey  bees  have  a  monopoly  on  a  very 
great  industry.  There  are  no  union  hours  in  a  bee- 
hive. Bees  never  ponder  Hamlet's  famous  question, 
"To  be,  or  not  to  be."  They  bee  all  the  time.  In  mak- 
ing a  single  pound  of  honey  the  bees  in  a  given  hive 


Two  Philosophies  of  Life  371 

are  said  to  visit  sixty  thousand  flowers.  This  is  not 
improbable,  as  a  minute  quantity  of  very  thin  nectar 
comes  from  each  flower.  They  gather  the  honey  and 
freight  it  by  airplane,  traveling  a  total  distance  of 
five  million  miles.  Sister,  the  next  time  you  feel 
weary  and  discouraged  with  your  housework,  and  see 
a  honey  bee  "idling  in  the  clover,"  greet  her  as  a 
member  of  the  guild  of  women  workers.  All  honey 
bees  are  women  workers — the  men  bees  do  not  work, 
so  when  winter  comes  they  don't  eat,  which  is  Zionic : 
"The  idler  shall  not  eat  the  bread  of  the  laborer." 
The  bees  worked  out  some  of  the  principles  of  Zion 
long  before  Enoch  built  his  city. 

A  BLUEBIRD'S  WORK 

Sometimes  we  hear  people  say,  "How  free  the  birds 
are."  But  the  birds  work.  Ornithologists  tell  us  that 
in  the  single  State  of  Massachusetts,  which  is  not  a 
very  large  State,  every  day  in  the  summer  twenty- 
one  thousand  bushels  of  noxious  bugs  and  worms  are 
gathered  and  destroyed  by  song  birds.  If  you  think 
that  is  not  work,  go  out  some  day  and  pick  a  pint  of 
bugs. 

I  am  told  that  bluebirds  rear  three  families  each 
summer;  which  means  that  they  build  three  homes. 
Again,  ornithologists  say  that  not  unusually  a  pair  of 
song  birds  will  make  two  hundred  trips  a  day  gather- 
ing food  for  their  fledglings.  If  you  were  to  go  to 
the  uptown  market  two  hundred  times  daily  for  pro- 
visions, you  would  think  you  were  working.  So  the 
next  time  you  see  a  bluebird  flitting  among  the  trees, 


372  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

like  a  bit  of  blue  sky  fallen  from  heaven,  greet  him 
as  "camerade."  He  has  his  blue  overalls  on  and  is 
doing  a  bluebird's  work. 

IGNOBLE    PARASITES 

Practically  all  living  creatures  work,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  one  class — parasites.  The  man  who  is  able 
to  work  and  will  not  work  puts  himself  in  the  ignoble 
fraternity  of  tapeworms,  cooties,  and  other  such 
creatures.  No  matter  how  much  money  a  man  has 
in  Zion,  if  he  is  physically  and  mentally  able  to  work 
and  won't  work  he  has  no  right  to  eat  in  Zion. 

Some  one  might  ask,  "Is  it  to.be  all  work  and  no 
play?  or,  Is  it  to  be  all  work  and  no  recreation?"  I 
think  that  of  late  years  the  church  has  made  her- 
self clear  along  that  line.  We  are  in  favor  of  legiti- 
mate recreation.  At  our  reunions  we  have  had 
various  kinds  of  recreation,  baseball,  basket  ball, 
volley  ball,  quoits,  tennis,  swimming,  etc.  All  whole- 
some recreations  are  good,  but  you  must  bear  in  mind 
the  place  recreation  has  in  life.  It  is  a  diversion  from 
the  strain  of  a  man's  legitimate  work.  His  work  is 
the  big  thing  in  life.  When  man  makes  pleasure  and 
recreation  the  objective  in  life  it  does  not  re-create ; 
it  becomes  not  constructive,  but  rather  destructive. 

The  philosophy  of  Jesus  Christ  is  the  philosophy 
of  righteousness,  "Seek  ye  first  to  build  up  the  king- 
dom of  God  and  to  establish  his  righteousness."  You 
may  wonder  how  you  can  build  up  the  kingdom  of 
God.  Jesus  said,  "Thy  kingdom  come,  thy  will  be 


Two  Philosophies  of  Life  373 

done  on  earth  as  it  is  done  in  heaven."  When  you 
in  your  own  person  reach  a  point  where  you  are  will- 
ing to  do  the  will  of  God  on  earth  as  it  is  done  in 
heaven,  you  have  added  one  person  to  the  kingdom  of 
God  on  earth.  A  man  who  does  that  is  pretty  sure 
to  have  an  interest  and  an  influence  that  will  enable 
him  to  help  others,  and  in  that  way  also  he  will  build 
up  the  kingdom  of  God. 

YOUR  CHOICE 

I  have  briefly  presented  in  contrast  these  two 
philosophies — philosophies  in  essence,  as  I  have 
said,  and  capable  of  expansion.  It  remains  for  you 
to  make  your  choice,  and  particularly  the  young  peo- 
ple who  may  be  standing  to-day  in  the  "valley  of 
decision."  And  in  making  your  choice  I  want  to  ad- 
,  monish  you  to  make  it  not  only  wisely,  but  to  make  it 
permanently.  This  church  has  had  altogether  too 
many  quitters.  When  you  make  your  choice,  do  so 
with  the  idea  that  so  long  as  life  lasts  you  will  abide 
by  your  decision. 

I  beg  of  you  young  people  to  look  around  you  and 
see  the  folly  and  the  fears  and  misery  of  those  who 
"ran  well  for  a  season"  and  then  fell  away,  and  make 
up  your  mind  like  adamant,  to  serve  God  all  the  days 
of  your  life,  and  not  let  some  temptation,  idle  rumor, 
or  disaffection  turn  you  aside  from  the  work  you  be- 
gan so  hopefully. 

It  seems  to  me  that  the  contrast  of  these  two  phi- 
losophies does  not  leave  very  much  doubt  in  your 
minds  concerning  what  the  choice  ought  to  be.  If  the 


374  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

worldly  philosophy  is  that  of  the  lazy  man,  the  glut- 
ton, the  inebriate,  and  the  fool,  the  philosophy  that 
has  always  been  the  philosophy  of  wasters  and  spend- 
ers and  spoilers,  in  contrast  the  philosophy  of  Jesus 
Christ  is  the  philosophy  of  manhood  and  womanhood 
and  of  Godliness. 

As  I  have  presented  the  matter  there  may  appear 
to  be  no  question  and  it  might  seem  a  reflection  upon 
your  intelligence  to  ask  you  to  choose.  But  I  have 
not  presented  the  philosophy  of  the  world  in  an  at- 
tractive light,  but  rather  in  its  true  light.  You  will 
meet  many  exponents  who  will  present  it  in  an  at- 
tractive light — sophists  who  can  make  black  appear 
white,  vice  seem  virtue,  dishonor  seem  honorable, 
and  shame  a  thing  to  boast  about.  Some  men  are 
proud  of  the  things  they  should  be  ashamed  of. 
When  you  hear  such  pleadings  you  will  need  intelli-' 
gence  and  backbone  to  make  a  wise  decision  and 
stand  by  it. 

BE  TRUE  TO  YOUR  OWN  SOUL 
I  make  this  plea  to  you  to-night — I  do  not  ask  you 
to  be  true  to  the  church.  I  do  not  ask  you  to  be  true 
to  your  father  or  mother,  your  brother  or  sister, 
your  wife  or  sweetheart,  or  even  God.  I  just  ask 
you  to  be  true  to  yourself,  because  this  philosophy 
appeals  to  all  that  is  good  and  wholesome  and  ad- 
mirable and  enduring  and  noble  in  your  own  souls, 
and  you  know  it.  There  is  a  good  deal  of  truth  in 
a  statement  that  you  will  find  in  Hamlet,  the  advice 
of  old  Polonious  to  his  son,  "To  thine  own  self  be 


Two  Philosophies  of  Life  375 

true;  and  it  must  follow  as  the  night  the  day,  thou 
canst  not  then  be  false  to  any  man."  If  you  will 
be  true  to  all  that  is  good  in  you,  I  am  sure  that  you 
will  be  true  to  the  church,  true  to  your  father  and 
mother,  true  to  sister  and  brother,  and  wife  and 
sweetheart,  and  true  to  God. 


A 


BLUE  PENCIL  NOTES 

BAD  egg  may  get  by  in  an  omelet,  never  as 
an  individual. 


If  "brevity  is  the  soul  of  wit,"  the  modern 
bathing  suit  is  the  funniest  thing  I  have  seen. 

The  gospel  has  a  cure  for  sore  hearts,  but  it  seems 
almost  powerless  in  the  case  of  soreheads. 

Sam  Jones  used  to  say  that  some  people  think  that 
they  are  "preserved"  when  in  fact  they  are  only 
"pickled."  And  he  added  that  when  his  old  mother 
made  preserves  she  sweetened  them. 

If  one  habitually  tries  to  be  kind  and  forbearing, 
as  the  gospel  requires,  some  people  conclude  that  he 
was  just  naturally  "born  that  way"  and  can't  help  it. 
But  the  chances  are  he  could  develop  as  much  vinegar 
and  vitriol  as  anyone,  if  he  chose  to  do  so. 

Of  a  Sunday  Brother  A remarked,  "I  don't 

know  whether  to  go  to  church  or  take  a  nap."  And 
Sister  A-  -  replied:  "Why  not  do  both?"  And 
she  was  by  no  means  the  first  person  to  study  out 
that  combination. 

Sometimes  the  preacher  is  invited  out  to  dinner 
and  sits  down  to  an  overloaded  table.  His  host  in- 

376 


Blue  Pencil  Notes  377 

sists  that  he  shall  eat  long  after  his  appetite  is  satis- 
fied. This  should  be  a  warning  to  him  not  to  attempt 
to  force  a  long,  six-course  sermon  upon  an  audience 
that  at  best  is  not  very  hungry. 

When  you  preach  it  is  permissible  to  give  your 
hearers  palpitation  of  the  heart;  but  do  not,  oh,  do 
not  give  them  concussion  of  the  brain. 

Very  long  sermons  are  very  likely  to  be  very  thin. 
They  are  like  Farmer  Saveall's  cider.  Farmer 
Saveall  boasted  one  season  that  he  had  made  fifteen 
barrels  of  cider.  A  candid  neighbor  took  a  sip  of 
the  liquid  and  remarked,  "It's  a  pity  that  you  hadn't 
another  apple ;  you  might  V  made  another  bar'l." 

The  habit  of  using  slang  in  the  pulpit  often  comes 
from  reading  after  or  listening  to  men  of  the  Billy 
Sunday  type.  And  it  is  a  habit,  and  one  that  needs 
to  be  held  rather  well  in  hand. 

An  occasional  slang  phrase,  if  not  too  "racy,"  may 
add  a  certain  piquancy  to  a  sermon.  But  the  man 
whose  every  sentence  is  loaded  with  it  ruins  his 
effort.  A  dash  of  pepper  may  be  tolerated,  but  no 
one  who  is  not  abnormal  wishes  to  dine  on  pepper. 

When  we  get  angry  and  "say  just  what  we  think" 
we  usually  take  a  long  time  afterward  thinking  about 
what  we  have  said. 


378  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

An  old  Chinese  proverb  says :  "A  thousand  men 
can  make  a  camp,  but  it  takes  a  woman  to  make  a 
home."  To  which  a  great  many  American  soldier 
boys  are  saying,  Amen. 

The  leading  question  that  I  ask  about  a  man  is 
this,  Is  he  sincere?  If  he  rings  true  I  can  overlook 
many  mistakes  and  peculiarities  and  forgive  many 
personal  affronts.  But  if  he  sounds  hollow,  if  I 
detect  a  note  of  pretense  and  disloyalty,  I  feel  that 
it  would  be  a  betrayal  of  common  sense  and  a  per- 
version of  charity  to  trust  him  very  far. 

There  is  a  story  about  two  men  who  were  turned 
back  at  the  pearly  gates.  Sorrowing,  they  went 
away.  But  as  they  did  so  they  met  a  cripple.  Each 
man  got  under  the  cripple's  arm,  one  on  either  side, 
and  agreed  to  help  him  as  far  as  the  gate.  When 
they  got  there  Peter  threw  the  gates  wide  open  and 
said  to  the  cripple,  "Come  in  and  bring  your  crutches 
with  you." 

Calif ornians  cull  their  oranges.  The  best  oranges 
are  sent  out  of  the  State  to  Eastern  markets.  The 
culls  are  sold  for  the  home  consumption.  A  great 
many  people  act  on  the  same  principle.  The  best 
manners  and  kindest  words  are  saved  for  strangers, 
and  odds  and  ends  of  bad  temper  and  ill  manners 
reserved  for  the  home  circle.  In  the  sense  that 
charity  is  love,  the  old  saying  holds  true,  that 
charity  should  begin  at  home. 


Blue  Pencil  Notes  379 

If  the  house  of  God  is  a  house  of  order,  then  a 
sermon  delivered  in  the  house  of  God,  to  be  a  godly 
sermon,  should  be  an  orderly  sermon.  It  should  have 
a  proper  and  dignified  beginning.  It  should  have  an 
orderly  and  coherent  line  of  thought  all  the  way 
through,  each  idea  being  in  some  way  related  to  the 
central  theme.  And  it  should  have  a  fitting  ending, 
and  not  merely  "run  out." 


SPIRITUALITY  AND   EDUCATION 

NOTE  the  subject  carefully:  "Spirituality  and 
education."    I  say  that  because  so  many  es- 
say to  pervert  it  to  read,  "Spirituality  or  edu- 
cation/*   They  would  force  a  choice  between  the  two. 
We  do  not  have  to  choose.  Or  they  would  assume  that 
some  one  would  persuade  the  church  to  choose  edu- 
cation definitely  and  reject  spirituality. 

Nor  would  it  be  profitable  to  discuss  the  subject, 
"Spirituality  versus  education."  A  man  who  has 
two  sons  does  not  waste  time  deciding  which  he  loves 
most  when  he  loves  both.  The  Lord  says,  "Seek 
learning  even  by  study,  and  also  by  faith."  If  that 
means  anything  it  means  that  both  the  intellectual 
and  the  spiritual  side  of  man  should  be  enlisted  in 
the  great  pursuit  of  truth. 

SCIENCE    AND    RELIGION 

One  whole  generation  of  scientists  attempted  to 
knock  the  props  from  under  religion.  They  made 
intellect  all.  They  denied  revelation  and  inspiration. 
Faith  to  them  meant  superstition.  But  now  a  whole 
school,  led  by  Lodge,  says:  "The  pre-scientific  in- 
sight of  genius — of  poets  and  prophets  and  saints — 
was  of  supreme  value" ;  and  adds,  "Genuine  religion 
has  its  roots  deep  down  in  the  heart  of  humanity 
and  in  the  reality  of  things." 

One  whole  generation  of  religious,  people  feared 
380 


Spirituality  and  Education  381 

and  hated  scientific  investigation.  But  now  men  are 
beginning-  to  feel  that  no  single  fact  will  ever  be 
found  in  earth  or  star  to  disprove  the  "eternal  veri- 
ties." Latter  Day  Saints,  least  of  all,  have  cause  to 
fear.  This  revelation  is  recent  and  vital,  confirming 
the  ancient  testimonies. 

HEART  AND  MIND 

Jesus  said,  "Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God 
with  all  thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with 
all  thy  mind,  and  with  all  thy  strength." 

The  heart  is  supposed  to  be  the  seat  of  emotions. 
Formerly  it  was  supposed  to  be  literally  the  seat  of 
the  emotions;  now  it  is  always  referred  to  in  a 
figurative  sense  in  that  way.  So  we  are  to  love  God 
with  our  emotional  nature.  Our  religion  must  be 
emotional. 

The  mind  is  the  seat  of  the  intellect.  Our  religion 
is  to  be  intellectual.  Once  in  a  while  an  elder  says 
that  he  is  trying  to  educate  the  Saints  to  make  their 
religion  more  intellectual  and  less  emotional.  I  am 
not ;  I  want  it  to  be  both  emotional  and  intellectual. 

I'LL    TAKE    BOTH 

Once  in  a  while  one  says  that  we  need  more  spirit- 
uality and  less  education.  I  don't  think  so.  We  need 
more  of  both.  A  certain  noted  character  in  news- 
paper comics  was  asked  which  he  would  take,  the 
light  meat  or  the  dark.  He  replied  that  he  would 
take  both. 

Why  wrangle  about  the  relative  merits  of  light 


382  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

meat  and  dark  when  we  can  have  both?  Why  quar- 
rel about  the  relative  importance  of  spirituality  and 
education  when  we  should  have  both  and  God  wants 
us  to  have  both  ? 

The  man  who  stresses  one  and  neglects  the  other 
makes  a  mistake.  His  mistake  may  be  merely  tech- 
nical, because  he  may  take  the  other  quite  for 
granted.  But  the  argument  which  results  is  more 
often  than  not  due  to  a  failure  to  understand  po- 
sitions. One  argues  for  education  and  one  for  spirit- 
uality, when  in  fact  they  could  as  well  as  not  agree 
in  arguing  for  both. 

HARD-HEADED  AND  SOFT-HEARTED  SAINTS 

The  great  preachers  of  all  ages  have  been  intensely 
emotional.  There  is  no  occasion  to  slur  emotional- 
ism, providing  it  is  balanced  by  sanity.  No  man 
ever  greatly  declared  a  great  message  until  his  own 
soul  was  on  fire  with  it.  Cold  logic  alone  in  the  pul- 
pit will  never  convert  men.  There  are  too  many  cold 
altars  already.  The  lips  of  the  preacher  must  be 
touched  by  burning  coals  from  the  altar  of  heaven. 

But  it  is  equally  true  that  "the  glory  of  God  is 
intelligence."  The  greater  the  education  and  the 
better  the  training  of  the  preacher  the  more  effectu- 
ally he  can  show  forth  the  glory  of  God — for  it  will 
be  in  his  own  person.  And  this  applies  to  the  pri- 
vate life  of  the  individual  quite  as  much  as  to  the 
public  ministrations  of  the  preacher. 

Our  religion  should  involve  both  heart  and  head. 
A  Latter  Day  Saint  should  be  a  hard-headed  and 


Spirituality  and  Education  383 

soft-hearted  Christian  gentleman.     If  he  gets  re- 
versed on  either  point  or  on  both  he  is  in  a  bad  way. 

TO  FAITH  VIRTUE,   TO  VIRTUE  KNOWLEDGE 

The  writer  pleads  for  education  always  with  the 
understanding  that  it  is  to  be  used  to  assist  in  pro- 
mulgating to  the  world  in  both  word  and  deed  the 
gospel  message.  If  that  objective  were  lost  sight  of 
our  building  of  colleges  and  drafting  of  curriculums 
would  all  be  in  vain. 

If  this  church  should  ever  come  to  reject  inspi- 
ration and  discard  revelation  and  spiritual  guidance 
its  decline  and  fall  would  be  sure  and  speedy.  God 
would  then  again  call  from  some  carpenter  shop 
or  mine  some  unlettered  but  faithful  man  to  pro- 
claim our  folly.  But  so  far  as  we  know,  no  one 
contemplates  such  a  program. 

The  plea  for  higher  learning  and  pure  spirituality 
is  strictly  in  harmony  with  Saint  Peter's  exhortation, 
"Add  to  your  faith  virtue,  and  to  virtue  knowledge." 
May  our  faith  reach  out  and  lay  hold  upon  all  things 
worthy  of  belief,  and  our  storehouse  of  knowledge 
expand  continuously  until  it  shall  embrace  all  truth. 


PREJUDICE 

The  first  antagonist  of  the  Christian  faith  was  prejudice. — 
Dean  George  Hodges,  in  The  Early  Church,  page  63. 

Prejudice  squints  when  it  looks,  and  lies  when  it  talks. — 
Duchess  de  Arbantes. 

DEAN  HOGDES  very  truly  states  that  the  first 
antagonist  of  the  Christian  faith  was  preju- 
dice. Jesus  himself  encountered  it  and  said 
to  his  disciples :  "They  hated  me  without  a  cause." 
He  had  been  prejudged  and  his  message  rejected  on 
this  ground :  "Can  there  any  good  thing  come  out  of 
Nazareth?" 

His  disciples  later  found  that  state  of  mind  every- 
where. The  Jews  at  Rome  declared  to  Paul:  "As 
concerning  this  sect,  we  know  that  everywhere  it  is 
spoken  against."  The  church  inherited  the  malice 
that  had  been  directed  towards  the  Master. 

This  was  as  Jesus  had  predicted,  for  he  said :  "The 
servant  is  not  greater  than  his  Lord.  If  they  have 
persecuted  me,  they  will  also  persecute  you." 

History  repeats  itself.  Wherever  the  gospel  is 
presented  it  encounters  prejudice.  In  the  last  days 
"the  way  of  truth  is  evilly  spoken  of,"  as  Peter  said 
that  it  should  be. 

Scarcely  had  the  "latter-day  glory"  shone  forth  be- 
fore the  messengers  of  the  covenant  encountered  as 
their  first  and  most  potent  adversary  the  old-time 
spirit  of  prejudice.  The  old  cry,  "Can  there  any 
'  384 


Prejudice  385 

good  thing  come  out  of  Nazareth?"  was  repeated  in 
a  different  form.  Persecution  followed  quickly  and 
naturally. 

The  Duchess  de  Arbantes  is  credited  with  saying : 
' 'Prejudice  squints  when  it  looks,  and  lies  when  it 
talks." 

Prejudice  is  unable  to  see  correctly  the  message 
that  we  have  to  present.  Its  vision  is  distorted  and 
perverted.  And  to  the  error  and  wrong  of  false  per- 
ception is  added  the  mendacity  of  willful  misrepre- 
sentation. So  that  it  is  pretty  nearly  correct  to  say 
that  prejudice  squints  when  it  looks  and  lies  when  it 
talks. 

Such  misconception  and  misrepresentation  have 
made  martyrs  in  this  age  no  less  than  in  past  ages. 
Blinded  by  prejudice,  people  see  monstrous  things 
that  have  no  existence ;  maddened  by  absurd  and  ma- 
licious stories  having  their  origin  in  prejudice,  they 
resort  to  deeds  of  violence — perhaps  like  Saul  of  Tar- 
sus verily  thinking  that  they  are  doing  God's  pleas- 
ure. 

Thus  the  Jews  of  old  persecuted  Christians,  cru- 
cifying Jesus  and  driving  his  disciples  from  city  to 
city.  Christians  in  turn  have  persecuted  Jews  for 
centuries  past. 

In  the  name  of  God,  Catholics  have  burned  Prot- 
estants at  the  stake ;  and  Protestants,  by  way  of  re- 
turning evil  for  evil,  in  direct  disobedience  to  their 
great  Exemplar,  have  burned  Catholics  at  the  stake. 
(And  by  the  way,  even  to-day  no  story  about  Catho- 
lics is  too  absurd  to  find  instant  credence  among 
13 


386  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

Protestants  in  some  quarters ;  while  many  Catholics 
will  neither  read  nor  listen  to  any  appeal  from  non- 
Catholic  sources.) 

It  is  an  evidence  of  the  power  of  prejudice  that  it 
held  so  clear-sighted  a  man  as  Paul  so  long  a  captive. 
He  consented  to  the  foul  murder  of  Stephen.  His 
arguments  were  bonds,  scourges,  and  prisons.  It 
took  a  miracle  of  grace  to  tear  the  scales  from  his 
eyes.  He  spent  the  rest  of  his  life  in  repentance. 
But  scarcely  was  he  free  from  the  personal  dominion 
of  prejudice  until  he  became  its  victim  in  another 
way.  He  who  had  cast  others  into  prison  was  him- 
self cast  into  prison.  He  who  had  been  deaf  and 
blind  to  reason  found  others  blind  and  deaf. 

How  much  better  to  be  the  victim  of  prejudice  in 
that  way  than  to  be  its  slave,  bringing  suffering  un- 
justly upon  others.  The  Master  has  told  us  that  we 
shall  be  blessed  when  men  say  all  manner  of  things 
against  us  falsely  for  his  name's  sake. 

The  spirit  of  prejudice  is  not  dead;  neither  is  it 
asleep.  That  fact  is  forced  upon  our  attention  in 
various  disagreeable  ways  from  time  to  time — "lest 
we  forget."  Were  it  not  so  we  might  feel  greater 
concern. 

Had  the  first  great  antagonist  of  the  Christian 
propaganda  ceased  his  efforts  against  us  we  might 
well  pause  to  inquire  whether  or  not  we  were  still 
active  in  the  true  Christian  propaganda.  So  in  one 
way  we  may  take  comfort  when  we  encounter  blind 
and  bitter  prejudice,  as  we  do  frequently  enough  to 
keep  us  sober  and  alert. 


THE    TRUMPET   AND    PITCHER 

Contradictions  found  in   "Anti-Mormon"    Works 
"And  the  Lord  set  every  man's  sword  against  his  fellows." 

GIDEON  came  against  the  hosts  of  Midian  at 
night  with  his  three  hundred  men.  At  the 
prearranged  signal  each  man  broke  his 
pitcher,  held  his  light  aloft,  and  blew  his  trumpet. 
Confusion  ensued  in  the  camp  of  Midian.  The  sol- 
diers fell  to  killing  each  other.  The  record  says: 
"And  the  Lord  set  every  man's  sword  against  his 
fellows." 

At  the  sounding  of  the  trump  of  the  restored  gos- 
pel a  somewhat  similar  condition  has  obtained  among 
our  opponents.  They  are  very  much  in  the  dark, 
very  much  confused,  and  in  his  blind  zeal  each  man 
stabs  his  fellow. 

To  prove  this  we  propose  to  quote  from  a  num- 
ber of  leading  books,  all  written  by  the  opposition, 
all  put  forth  as  reliable,  showing  only  a  few  of  hun- 
dreds of  contradictions. 

JOSEPH'S   MOTHER  EXPECTED   HIM   TO  BE  A   PROPHET 

Clark  Braden,  in  the  Braden  and  Kelley  Debate, 
published  by  the  Christian  Publishing  Company, 
Saint  Louis,  and  put  forth  by  them  as  a  thoroughly 
reliable  work,  says: 

"She  prophesied,  at  the  time,  that  Joe,  then  seven 
years  old,  WOULD  BE  A  PROPHET,  and  give  to  the  world 

387 


388  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

a  new  religion.  JOE  WAS  RAISED  WITH  THIS 
IDEA  BEFORE  HIM.  All  the  family  were  taught 
and  believed  it.  ...  This  accounts  for  Joe's  peculiar 
gravity  when  but  a  child,  and  as  a  youth.  He  was 
to  be  a  prophet,  and  he  must  not  act  as  other  children 
and  boys  did." — Braden  and  Kelley  Debate,  p.  46. 

JOSEPH'S  MOTHER  DID  NOT  EXPECT  HIM  TO  BE  A 
PROPHET 

That  looks  bad,  for  it  might  argue  that  the  whole 
career  of  the  modern  prophet  was  the  result  of  ma- 
ternal suggestion.  But  at  the  sounding  of  the 
trumpet  Braden  is  slain  by  his  own  colleagues.  In 
a  large  and  pretentious  work  written  by  Reginald 
and  Ruth  Kauffman,  published  in  London,  we  read: 

"His  appearance  was  NOT,  as  one  might  have  ex- 
pected, heralded  by  any  mystic  portents,  and  his  ear- 
lier childhood  was,  EVEN  IN  HIS  MOTHER'S  EYES,  in  no 
wise  remarkable.  Indeed,  Mrs.  Smith  had  never  ex- 
pressed the  opinion  that  her  son  'Joe/  as  he  was 
called,  would  be  the  founder  of  the  faith  of  which 
she  dreamed.  Her  visions  had  brought  her  to  NO 
SUCH  CONCLUSION.  They  had,  nevertheless,  impelled 
her  to  the  belief  that  a  new  prophet  should  appear, 
and,  assuming  a  more  or  less  personal  application 
for  her  revelations,  after  the  manner  of  seers,  she 
gave  out  hints  that  ALVAH,  HER  ELDEST  SON,  WAS 
THE  DIVINELY  APPOINTED.  But  Alvah,  according  to 
unkind  gossip,  was  a  greedy  boy,  and,  one  day,  eating 
too  many  green  turnips,  died.  Thus  did  the  mantle 


The  Trumpet  and  the  Pitcher  389 

descend  upon  Joseph." — The  Latter  Day  Saints,  by 
Reginald  and  Ruth  Kauffman,  pp.  21,  22. 

These  wild  imaginings  are  amusing,  but  are  easily 
understood.  Braden  wished  to  argue  that  Joseph 
Smith  was  the  result  of  maternal  suggestion.  So  he 
manufactured  history  to  suit  his  theory.  The  Kauff- 
mans,  on  the  other  hand,  were  desirous  of  proving 
Lucy  Smith  a  false  prophet.  So  they  manufactured 
history  to  suit  their  taste.  Neither  cared  for  exact 
facts  in  the  case.  Others  have  pursued  a  similar 
course.  The  insignificant  fact  that  Lucy  Smith  never 
had  a  son  named  Alvah  was  not  to  stand  in  the  way 
of  the  theory.  One  must  be  created  and  later  killed 
with  green  turnips. 

JOSEPH  HAD  NO  ENERGY  OR  PERSISTENCY 

Frank  J.  Cannon  assures  us : 

"Joseph  Smith  was  not  the  man  to  surmount  great 
obstacles  and  compel  great  and  lasting  changes  by 
his  own  unaided  force.  He  lacked  ENERGY,  di- 
plomacy, and  STEADFASTNESS  for  such  a  task."- 
Brigham  Young  and  His  Mormon  Empire,  by  Ex- 
Senator  Frank  J.  Cannon  and  George  L.  Knapp, 
chap.  2,  p.  20. 

HE   WAS   VERY   ENERGETIC,    PERSISTENT,   ABLE 

Others  tell  a  very  different  story: 
"But,   with   all   these  drawbacks,   he  was  much 
more  than  an  ordinary  man.  He  possessed  the  most 

INDOMITABLE   PERSEVERANCE,    was    a    good   judge    of 

men,  and  deemed  himself  born  to  command  and  he 


390  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

did  command." — Recollections  of  an  Old  Pioneer, 
P.  H.  Burnett,  p.  66;  as  quoted  in  Founder  of  Mor- 
monism,  p.  6. 

"His  eloquence,  rude  but  powerful — his  letters, 
clever  and  sarcastic — the  manifold  character  and 
boldness  of  his  designs — his  courage  in  enterprise — 
HIS  PERSEVERANCE  DESPITE  GREAT  OB- 
STACLES— his  conception  and  partial  execution  of 
the  temple  of  Nauvoo — these  and  other  things  mark 
him  as  a  man  of  more  than  ordinary  caliber." — The 
Mormons'  Own  Book,  and  Life  of  Joseph  Smith,  by 
T.  W.  P.  Taylor,  p.  LI. 

"The  REMARKABLE  TENACITY  OF  PURPOSE  which  he 

exhibited  under  discouraging  circumstances,  and  the 
apparent  sincerity  of  his  professions,  have  been  sug- 
gested as  evidence  that  he  was  really  a  religious  en- 
thusiast, who  became  the  victim  of  his  own  de- 
lusions."— Utah  and  the  Mormons,  by  Benjamin  G. 
Ferris,  at  one  time  Secretary  of  Utah  Territory,  pp. 
130,  131. 

BOOK  OF  MORMON   TAKEN  FROM   SPALDING  ROMANCE 

Mr.  Charles  Shook,  whose  work  R.  B.  Neal  says 
will  "shake  the  foundation"  of  Latter  Day  Saintism, 
has  this  to  say  about  the  Spalding  Romance  theory : 

"Gentiles,  with  few  exceptions,  believe  that  the 
BOOK  OF  MORMON  is  ONE  OF  SOLOMON  SPALDING'S 
ROMANCES,  which  somehow  fell  into  Smith's  hands 
and  was  altered  to  suit  his  purpose.  No  matter  what 
others  may  think,  I  AGREE  WITH  THOSE  WHO  ARE  OF 


The  Trumpet  and  the  Pitcher  391 

THIS  OPINION,  although  I  have  not  always  done  so." 
— Cumorah  Revisited,  by  Shook,  p.  25. 

BOOK   OF   MORMON   NOT   TAKEN   FROM    SPALDING  RO- 
MANCE 

Mr.  Shook,  who  was  thus  to  shake,  does  not  get 
far  with  his  opinion,  for  at  the  breaking  of  the 
pitcher,  Reverend  D.  H.  Bays,  the  man  who  studied 
"Mormonism"  for  forty  years,  and  was  hailed  by 
Mr.  Neal's  associates  as  a  ' 'child  of  Providence,"  im- 
mediately downs  him  with  this: 

"The  long-lost  Spalding  story  has  at  last  been  un- 
earthed, and  is  now  on  deposit  in  the  library  of 
Oberlin  College  at  Oberlin,  Ohio,  and  may  be  ex- 
amined by  anyone  who  may  take  the  pains  to  call 
on  President  Fairchild,  of  that  institution.  .  .  .  THE 
SPALDING  STORY  is  A  FAILURE.  Do  not  attempt  to 
rely  upon  it— IT  WILL  LET  YOU  DOWN. 

"The  entire  theory  connecting  Sidney  Rigdon  and 
the  Spalding  romance  with  Joseph  Smith  in  originat- 
ing the  Book  of  Mormon  MUST  BE  ABANDONED." 
— Doctrines  and  Dogmas  of  Mormonism,  D.  H.  Bays, 
pp.  24,  25. 

Professor  L.  Woodbridge  Riley  comes  to  the  sup- 
port of  Bays  in  the  following : 

"In  spite  of  a  continuous  stream  of  conjectural 
literature,  it  is  as  yet  IMPOSSIBLE  to  pick  out  any  spe- 
cial document  as  an  original  source  of  the  Book  of 
Mormon.  In  particular  the  commonly  accepted 
Spalding  theory  is  INSOLUBLE  from  EXTERNAL  evi- 


392  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 


dence    and    DISPROVED    BY    INTERNAL^EVI- 
DENCE."— The  Founder  of  Mormonism,  p.  172. 


JOSEPH  SMITH  IGNORANT  AND  FEEBLE-MINDED 

We  are  assured  by  various  writers  that  the 
founder  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day 
Saints  was  ignorant  and  dull-witted : 

"His  UNTUTORED  and  FEEBLE  INTELLECT  had 
not  yet  grasped  at  anything  beyond  mere  toying  with 
mysterious  things/' — The  Prophet  of  Palmyra, 
Thomas  Gregg,  p.  4. 

"The  young  people  of  the  town  considered  him  NOT 
QUITE  FULL-WITTED  and,  with  the  cruelty  of  youth, 
made  him  the  butt  for  their  practical  jokes." — The 
Latter  Day  Saints,  Kauffman,  p.  23. 

"The  extreme  IGNORANCE  and  apparent  STUPIDITY 
of  this  modern  prophet." — Mormonism  Unveiled,  by 
E.  D.  Howe,  p.  12. 

JOSEPH  SMITH  BRAINY  AND  INTELLIGENT 

Again  the  "child  of  Providence,"  charges  through 
the  camp  of  Midian  and  attacks  Messrs.  Gregg, 
Howe,  and  Kauffman : 

"He  was  confessedly  illiterate,  but  nature  had  en- 
dowed him  with  a  CLEAR,  STRONG  BRAIN,  and 
by  sheer  force  of  his  INTELLECTUALITY  he  was 
from  the  very  beginning  of  his  career  a  leader." — 
The  Doctrines  and  Dogmas  of  Mormonism,  by  D.  H. 
Bays,  p.  19. 


The  Trumpet  and  the  Pitcher  393 

JOSEPH  SMITH  A  COWARD 

Mr.  Shook  again  arises  to  shake,  and  declares : 
"Time  made  some  changes  and  the  tow-head  be- 
came a  light  auburn,  but  the  moral  traits  continued 
the  same  and  secretiveness,  untruthfulness,  dis- 
honesty and  COWARDICE  followed  him  to  his  assas- 
sination/'— The  True  Origin  of  Mormon  Polygamy, 
by  Shook,  p.  21.  (Old  edition.) 

JOSEPH     SMITH     VERY     BRAVE 

We  have  no  time  to  resent  the  charge  of  cowardice, 
for  Mr.  Smucker  and  Doctor  Wyl,  other  "well-posted 
students"  leap  forward  when  the  lights  blaze  up  and 
overthrow  the  "shaking  Shook." 

"The  Smiths  are  not  without  talent,  and  are  said 
to  be  as  BRAVE -AS  LIONS.    Joseph,  the  chief,  is  a 
noble-looking  fellow,  a  Mahomet  every  inch  of  him." 
—History  of  the  Mormons,  by  Smucker,  p.  147. 

"It  must  be  admitted  that  he  displayed  no  little 
zeal  and  COURAGE;  that  his  tact  was  great,  that  his 
talents  for  governing  men  were  of  no  mean  order." 
-Ibid.,  p.  182. 

"He  had  physical  COURAGE,  FOR  HE  DIED  GAME."- 
Doctor  Wyl,  quoted  in  Word  of  Truth,  June  4,  1913. 

HE    SHOOTS    FOUR    MEN 

The  Kauffmans,  Ruth  and  Reginald,  now  regale  us 
with  a  wonderful  story,  as  follows : 

"It  appears  that  Joseph  Smith  DIED  BRAVELY  :  'he 
stood  by  the  jamb  of  the  door  and  fired  four  shots, 


394  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

BRINGING  HIS  MAN  DOWN  EVERY  TIME/  " — The  Lat- 
ter Day  Saints,  by  Kauffman,  p.  47. 

HE    KILLS    NO    ONE 

We  are  disturbed  by  this  gory  tale  about  four  dead 
men,  until  another  author  of  equal  rank  and  vast  re- 
search assures  us  that  no  such  thing  occurred ;  it  was 
merely  a  matter  of  wounding  one  man  slightly  in 
the  elbow,  in  the  region  of  the  "crazy  bone,"  where 
we  imagine  numbers  of  these  writers  have  been  in- 
jured: 

"Guns  were  thrust  in  and  discharged,  and  Joseph, 
with  a  revolver,  returned  two  shots,  HITTING  ONE 
MAN  IN  THE  ELBOW." — The  History  of  the  Mor- 
mons, by  Lieutenant  Gunnison,  pp.  123,  124. 

HIS  ANCESTORS  VERY  BAD  PEOPLE 

Mr.  L.  B.  Cake  affirms : 

"Seventy  reputable  men  who  knew,  stated  under 
oath  that  this  ;Smith  family  was  ignorant;  that  the 
males  were  drunkards,  blasphemers,  liars,  thieves; 
who  put  in  their  time  digging  for  hidden  treasures 
of  the  Captain  Kidd  kind,  and  defrauding  their 
neighbors.  Reputable  citizens  aver  under  oath  that 
these  Smiths  were  a  low,  wicked  household  and  Joe 
the  worst  of  the  lot." — Peepstone  Joe  and  the  Peck 
Manuscript,  by  Lu  B.  Cake,  chap.  2,  p.  9. 

ANCESTORS    GOOD,    RELIGIOUS,   AMERICAN    PATRIOTS 

Mr.  Cake  is  upheld  in  this  charge  by  other  writers, 
but  when  the  trumpet  sounds  one  Josiah  F.  Gibbs, 


The  Trumpet  and  the  Pitcher  395 

another  Midianite,  who  assures  us  that  he  has  spent 
the  best  part  of  his  life  investigating  this  question, 
and  is  an  ardent  opponent  of  "Mormonism,"  turns 
upon  Mr.  Cake  quite  unexpectedly  and  runs  him 
through  verbally: 

"Lucy  Mack  Smith,  the  mother  of  Joseph  Smith, 
was  a  woman  of  UNUSUAL  STRENGTH  OF 
CHARACTER,  UNQUESTIONED  PIETY,  and  of 
an  intensely  visionary  mental  organization." — 
Lights  and  Shadows  of  Mormonism,  by  Josiah  F. 
Gibbs,  p.  23. 

"Solomon  Mack,  the  father  of  Lucy,  was  very 
likely  of  English  extraction.  He  participated  in  the 
War  of  the  Revolution  and  was  in  every  sense  a 
TYPICAL  AND  PATRIOTIC  AMERICAN.  He  was 
deeply  RELIGIOUS."— Ibid.,  p.  23. 

"From  his  mother's  side  of  the  family  he  [Joseph 
Smith]  inherited  a  strong  DEVOTIONAL  TEMPERA- 
MENT, supplemented  by  admirable  persistence  of 
purpose  and  MAGNIFICENT  COURAGE." — Ibid.,  p.  38. 

"Joseph  Smith,  sr.,  who  was  of  a  modest,  unpre- 
tentious and  easy-going,  yet  withal  HONEST  and 
EARNEST  nature."— Ibid.,  p.  49. 

JOSEPH   SMITH   NEVER  READ  ANYTHING 

With  the  greatest  assurance,  John  Hay  tells  us: 
Joseph  never  read  Moliere, — NOR  ANYBODY  ELSE." 
— Secretary  of  State  John  Hay,  in  The  Mormon 
Prophet's  Tragedy. 

Such  a  picture  of  profound  ignorance  and  illit- 
eracy is  very  painful  to  contemplate.  But  wait ! 


396  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

HE    READ    VERY    COMPREHENSIVELY 

There  is  another  authority  who  knows  all  about 
the  matter,  the  Reverend  W.  L.  Crowe. 

"And  this  ebony  bird  beguiling 
My  sad  fancy  into  smiling,"  says: 

"He  read  COMPREHENSIVELY,  and  as  he  ad- 
vanced in  reading  and  knowledge  he  assumed  a 
spiritual  aspect.  He  FREQUENTLY  PERUSED  THE 
BIBLE,  AND  BECAME  QUITE  FAMILIAR  WITH  ITS  CON- 
TENTS."—The  Mormon  Waterloo,  by  W.  L.  Crowe, 
p.  9. 

There  you  are,  Hay-Crowe,  Crowe-Hay — take 
your  choice. 

VERY  DAMAGING  AFFIDAVITS 

Thomas  Gregg  has  the  following,  in  The  Prophet 
of  Palmyra : 

"'Mr.  E.  D.  Howe,  in  his  valuable  work,  Mormon- 
ism  Unveiled  (Painesville,  Ohio,  1834),  presents  the 
testimonials  of  eighty-one  persons,  neighbors  and 
acquaintances  of  the  Smith  family,  all  attesting  to 
their  illiteracy  and  generally  worthless  and  dis- 
reputable character,  especially  that  of  the  son  'Joe/ 
as  he  was  called." — The  Prophet  of  Palmyra,  p.  11. 

AFFIDAVITS   OF   JEALOUS   NEIGHBORS   NO  GOOD 

These  eighty-one  affidavits  are  very  disturbing  to 
some  minds,  but  now  comes  Professor  I.  Woodbridge 
Riley,  at  one  time  of  the  University  of  New  York, 
and  assures  Messrs.  Gregg  and  Howe  (as  we  have 


The  Trumpet  and  the  Pitcher  397 

often  done)  that  they  are  of  no  value  as  evidence. 
Hear  him : 

"Concerning  this  unpleasant  fact  NO  RELIANCE  is 
to  be  placed  in  the  MULTIPLIED  AFFIDAVITS  OF  JEAL- 
OUS NEIGHBORS  who  swore  on  oath  that  there  was 
much  intoxication  among  the  Smiths;  PEOPLE  IN 
THOSE  DAYS  HAD  THE  AFFIDAVIT  HABIT." 
—The  Founder  of  Mormonism,  p.  66. 

THREE  WITNESSES  RENOUNCE  TESTIMONY 

The  Reverend  W.  A.  Stanton  in  a  booklet  pub- 
lished by  the  American  Baptist  Publication  Society, 
entitled,  Three  Important  Movements,  Campbellism, 
Mormonism,  Spiritualism,  declares  that  the  three 
witnesses  to  the  Book  of  Mormon  repudiated  their 
testimony : 

"In  1830  the  book  was  printed,  and  with  it  a  sworn 
statement  by  Cowdery,  Harris,  and  David  Whitmer, 
that  an  angel  of  God  had  shown  them  the  plates  of 
which  the  book  purported  to  be  a  translation.  Some 
years  later  these  three  men  renounced  Mormonism, 

AND  DECLARED  SAID  STATEMENT  FALSE." — Three  Im- 
portant Movements,  p.  35. 

WITNESSES  DID  NOT  RENOUNCE  TESTIMONY 

It  is  not  necessary  for  us  to  expose  the  fact  that 
the  Reverend  Stanton  is  in  error ;  Professor  I.  Wood- 
bridge  Riley  saves  us  that  trouble: 

"Up  to  his  DYING  DAY,  Cowdery  believed  there  was 
NO  'FICTION  AND  DECEPTION'  either  in  this  manifes- 


398 The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

tatirn,  or  in  the  plate  vision." — The  Founder  of 
Mor,  misrn,  p.  218. 

"Whitmer's  ENTIRE  FAITH  in  the  reality  of  the 
vision  of  the  plates  is  PERPETUATED  BY  THE  INSCRIP- 
TION ON  HIS  TOMB.  .  .  /The  record  of  the  Jews  and 
the  record  of  the  Nephites  are  one.  Truth  is  eter- 
nal/ " — The  Founder  of  Mormonism,  p.  219. 

"In  a  letter  written  by  him  in  1870,  he  [Harris] 
said :  'No  man  ever  heard  me  IN  ANY  WAY  deny  either 
the  Book  of  Mormon,  or  the  administration  of  the 
angel  that  showed  me  the  plates,  or  the  organization 
of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints 
under  the  administration  of  Joseph  Smith,  jr.,  the 
prophet,  whom  the  Lord  raised  up  for  that  purpose 
in  these  latter  days,  that  he  might  show  forth  his 
power  and  glory.  The  Lord  has  shown  me  these 
things  by  his  Spirit,  and  by  the  administration  of 
angels,  and  confirmed  the  same  with  signs  following 
FOR  THE  SPACE  OF  FORTY  YEARS." — The  Founder  of 
Mormonism,  p.  220. 

SIDNEY  RIGDON  FOUNDER  OF  MORMONISM 

Three  gentlemen  who  are  put  forward  as  reliable 
authorities  tell  us  that  Sidney  Rigdon  was  the  real 
author  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  and  founder  of  "Mor- 
monism" : 

"We  therefore  must  hold  out  Sidney  Rigdon  to  the 
world  as  being  the  ORIGINAL  'AUTHOR  AND  PROPRI- 
ETOR' of  the  whole  Mormon  conspiracy,  until  further 
light  is  elicited  upon  the  lost  writings  of  Solomon 
Spalding." — Mormonism,  by  E.  D.  Howe,  p.  290. 


The  Trumpet  and  the  Pitcher  399 

"A  religious  man,  however  erratic  he  might  be, 
who  had  been  trained  in  the  Bible  and  in  theology, 
was  needed  to  give  the  bogus  system  some  kind  of  re- 
ligious setting.  The  only  man  connected  with  the 
scheme  FROM  ITS  VERY  BEGINNING,  long  before 
the  public  organization,  who  had  any  such  qualifica- 
tions, was  the  Reverend  Sidney  Rigdon." — Reverend 
R.  G.  McNiece,  for  twenty  years  pastor  of  the  First 
Presbyterian  Church,  Salt  Lake  City,  in  The  Funda- 
mentals, vol.  8,  pp.  Ill,  112. 

"For  months  the  translation  languished  and  then 
a  'mysterious  stranger*  appeared  at  the  Smith  home 
on  various  occasions.  This  was  Sidney  Rigdon." — 
Mormonism,  the  Islam  of  America,  by  Reverend 
Bruce  Kinney,  p.  51. 

SIDNEY  RIGDON  NOT  CONNECTED  WITH   BEGINNING 
This  is  a  pretty  theory,  but  it  is  spoiled  by  the 
Reverend  Davis  H.  Bays,  who  assures  us  the  Book  of 
Mormon  was  in  print  and  the  church  organized  be- 
fore Rigdon  ever  heard  of  "Mormonism": 

"In  order  to  the  successful  refutation  of  the  Mor- 
mon dogma  it  is  not  at  all  necessary  to  connect  Sid- 
ney Rigdon  with  Joseph  Smith  in  its  inception.  In 
fact,  such  a  course  will  almost  certainly  RESULT  IN 
FAILURE  ;  and  the  principal  reason  why  it  will  fail  IS 
BECAUSE  IT  IS  NOT  TRUE.  ...  As  a  matter  of 
fact,  Sidney  Rigdon  was  an  EARNEST  AND  ABLE  AD- 
VOCATE OF  THE  REFORMATION  CONTEMPORANEOUSLY 
WITH  ALEXANDER  CAMPBELL,  the  pastor  of  a  church 
at  Mentor,  Ohio,  at  the  very  time  Joseph  Smith  and 


400  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

Oliver  Cowdery  were  propagating  Mormonism  in 
New  York  and  Pennsylvania.  Sidney  Rigdon  had 
never  heard  a  Mormon  sermon,  nor  had  he  ever  seen 
a  copy  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  till  he  was  presented 
with  one  by  Oliver  Cowdery  and  Parley  P.  Pratt  IN 
THE  FALL  OF  1830.  It  is  an  historical  fact  that  Mr. 
Rigdon  became  a  convert  to  the  new  religion  through 
the  preaching  of  these  gentlemen  during  the  visit  re- 
ferred to  above."- — The  Doctrines  and  Dogmas  of 
Mormonism,  pp.  22,  23. 

DISAGREEMENT  EVEN  ON  DATE  OF  BIRTH 

"Joseph  Smith  was  born  at  Sharon,  Windsor 
County,  Vermont,  December  23,  1805." — Origin  of 
Book  of  Mormon  and  Rise  and  Progress  of  Mormon 
Church,  by  S.  J.  S.  Davis,  p.  23. 

"Just  here  a  little  sketch  of  the  history  and  char- 
acter of  Joseph  Smith  may  be  in  order.  He  was  born 
at  Sharon,  Vermont.  The  date  of  his  birth  is  not  ex- 
actly known,  but  it  is  supposed  to  be  about  the  year 
1798." — Positive  Proof  that  Mormonism  is  a  Fraud 
and  the  Book  of  Mormon  a  Fable,  by  Reverend  J.  E. 
Mahaffey,  p.  5. 

Hundreds  of  contradictions  similar  to  the  ones 
here  produced  might  be  collected  with  a  little  re- 
search from  the  mass  of  confusion,  error,  and  false- 
hood put  forth  in  the  sacred  name  of  truth  in  oppo- 
sition to  the  latter-day  work.  You  will  not  gather 
grapes  and  figs  of  truth  and  fact  from  the  brambles 
of  error  and  deception. 


WHO  WAS  RIGHT  ABOUT 
POLYGAMY? 

TWO  PROPHECIES  AND  THE  SEQUEL 

BRIGHAM  YOUNG  sometimes  indulged  in 
prophecy.  At  the  time  when  he  first  promul- 
gated polygamy,  August  29,  1852,  he  said: 
"You  heard  Brother  Pratt  state,  this  morning, 
that  a  revelation  would  be  read  this  afternoon,  which 
was  given  previous  to  Joseph's  death.  It  con- 
tains a  doctrine  a  small  portion  of  the  world  is 
opposed  to;  but  I  can  deliver  a  prophecy  upon  it. 
Though  that  doctrine  has  not  been  practiced  by  the 
elders,  this  people  have  believed  in  it  for  years.  .  .  . 
The  revelation  will  be  read  to  you.  The  principle 
spoken  upon  by  Brother  Pratt,  this  morning,  we  be- 
lieve in.  And  I  tell  you — for  I  know  it — it  will  sail 
over  and  ride  triumphantly  above  all  the  prejudice 
and  priestcraft  of  the  day;  it  will  be  fostered  and 
believed  in  by  the  more  intelligent  portions  of  the 
world,  as  one  of  the  best  doctrines  ever  proclaimed 
to  any  people." — Supplement  to  Millennial  Star,  vol. 
15,  p.  31. 

Less  than  five  months  later  at  a  special  meeting 
the  people  of  the  Reorganization  received  the  word 
of  the  Lord  on  the  question  of  polygamy.  Elder 
Zenos  H.  Gurley,  sr.,  wrote : 

401 


402  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

"God  was  truly  with  us,  and  many  felt  to  say  with 
the  poet,  'Angels  are  now  hovering  o'er  us/  This 
was  on  the  eve  of  the  9th  of  January,  1853,  ever 
memorable  with  the  Saints  of  God.  About  half  an 
hour  afterwards  we  received  through  the  Spirit  the 
following,  as  nearly  as  we  could  write  it : 

"  'Polygamy  is  an  abomination  in  the  sight  of  the 
Lord  God :  it  is  not  of  me ;  I  abhor  it.  I  abhor  it,  as 
also  the  doctrines  of  the  Nicolaitans,  and  the  men  or 
set  of  men  who  practice  it.  I  judge  them  not,  I  judge 
not  those  who  practice  it.  Their  works  shall  judge 
them  at  the  last  day.  Be  ye  strong ;  ye  shall  contend 
against  this  doctrine.  .  .  ." — Church  History,  vol.  3, 
pp.  214,  215. 

The  issue  was  fairly  drawn.  Who  was  right? 
The  Reorganization  has  never  changed  in  its  po- 
sition. In  that  regard  it  is  Godlike.  God  changes 
not.  But  what  a  change  in  Utah!  Place  Brigham 
Young's  proud  prediction  in  immediate  contrast  with 
the  statement  made  by  Joseph  F.  Smith  and  his  as- 
sociates at  their  conference  of  1918.  Of  President 
Penrose's  speech  the  Deseret  News  says : 

"Plural  marriage  is  no  longer  countenanced,  no 
longer  allowed  in  the  church  and  transgressors,  if 
they  can  be  apprehended,  will  be  disciplined  by  the 
church  and  turned  over  to  be  disciplined  under  the 
law  of  the  land.  He  said  to  let  the  people  not  be- 
lieve these  men  who  go  about  to  satisfy  their  own 
lusts  and  lead  innocent  followers  and  pure  young 
women  astray.  They  are  rebels,  said  President  Pen- 


Who  Was  Right  About  Polygamy?  403 

rose,  rebels  against  church  and  rebels  against  the 
law  of  the  land/'— Deseret  News,  October  4,  1918. 

President  Joseph  F.  Smith  said : 

"I  feel  it  imperative  upon  myself  to  indorse  and 
affirm  without  recourse,  the  statements  that  have 
been  made  by  President  Penrose  in  relation  to  the 
subject  upon  which  he  last  treated.  I  want  to  say  to 
this  congregation  and  to  the  world  that  never,  at  any 
time,  since  my  presidency  in  the  Church  of  Jesus 
Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints  have  I  authorized  any 
man  to  perform  a  plural  marriage,  and  never,  since 
my  presidency  of  the  church  has  any  plural  marriage 
been  performed  with  my  sanction,  or  knowledge,  or 
with  the  consent  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of 
Latter  Day  Saints,  and  therefore  such  unions  as  have 
been  formed  unlawfully  and  contrary  to  the  order 
of  the  church  are  null  and  void  in  the  sight  of  God 
and  are  not  marriages." — Deseret  News,  October  4, 
1918. 

Heber  J.  Grant,  President  of  the  Twelve,  is  thus 
reported : 

"People  who  now  advocate  plural  marriage,  said 
President  Grant,  are  in  very  deed  rebels — and 
traitors.  And,  he  said,  it  is  the  duty  of  those  who 
may  be  approached  on  the  matter  of  plural  mar- 
riage, to  expose  those  who  approach  them." — Des- 
eret News,  October  5,  1918. 

[Note :  Mr.  Grant  was  elevated  to  the  presidency 
at  a  later  date.] 


404  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

Who  was  right  in  1852  and  1853  ?  By  confession 
of  the  Utah  dignitaries,  the  Reorganization  was 
right.  Brigham's  prophecy  fails  even  in  his  own 
capital  city.  Those  "intelligent  portions"  who  obey 
his  doctrine  are  now  branded  as  rebels — and  from 
his  pulpit.  Brigham  prophesied — but  Joseph  F. 
confesses. 

We  knew  all  the  time  that  polygamists  were 
wrong,  and  now  to  our  gratification  arise  two  mem- 
bers of  the  presidency  of  the  dominant  church  of 
Utah,  and  the  president  of  the  twelve,  and  publicly 
obey  the  injunction  given  to  the  Reorganization  con- 
cerning polygamy,  "Ye  shall  contend  against  this 
doctrine." 


DON'T    FORGET    THE    MAIN    ISSUE 

WHILE  DISCUSSING  THE  QUESTION,  "WAS  JOSEPH 
SMITH  A  POLYGAMIST?" 

TWO  men,  Jones  and  Smith,  were  having  a  very 
heated  argument  on  politics.  Finally  Jones, 
being  a  Democrat  (or  was  he  a  Republican) , 
was  driven  into  a  corner.  He  got  the  worst  of  the 
argument.  Then,  as  a  happy  way  out  of  his  trouble, 
he  turned  upon  Smith  and  said,  "Your  great-great- 
grandfather, who  assisted  in  founding  the  party,  was 
a  notorious  rascal."  From  that  point  on  he  refused 
to  discuss  principles  and  insisted  that  the  argument 
should  have  to  do  exclusively  with  the  character  of 
Smith's  ancestors.  The  maneuver  was  not  logical, 
but  it  was  expedient — from  his  viewpoint. 

For  many  years  the  Reorganized  Church  of  Jesus 
Christ  has  had  a  controversy  with  the  world.  Gener- 
ally when  we  get  our  opponents  in  a  corner  they 
immediately  attempt  to  shift  the  argument  to  the 
character  of  Joseph  Smith,  alleging  that  he  was  a 
polygamist,  and  what  not,  that  is  bad.  Sometimes, 
recognizing  the  value  of  preventives,  they  do  not 
wait  until  they  get  in  a  corner.  The  logic  is  bad, 
but  no  doubt  the  procedure  is  expedient — from  their 
standpoint. 

A  Christian  and  an  infidel  were  discussing  matters 
of  difference  in  belief.  The  infidel,  being  hard  put  to 

405 


406  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

it  on  principle  and  doctrine,  fell  back  upon  the  "mis- 
takes of  Moses,"  and  finally  landed  hard  on  Abra- 
ham, calling  him  a  polygamist,  and  yet  one  recog- 
nized by  Christians  as  the  "Father  of  the  Faithful." 
After  that  the  infidel  always  kept  as  far  as  possible 
from  the  New  Testament  and  as  near  as  possible 
to  Moses  and  Abraham.  Our  opponents  use  typical 
infidel  tactics. 

Ingersoll  ignored  the  teaching  of  Jesus  Christ  and 
tried  to  confine  the  argument  to  "the  mistakes  of 
Moses."  Ingersoll  is  dead.  Christianity  still  lives. 
Ingersoll  is  now  mourning  "the  mistakes  of  Inger- 
soll." Our  doughty  opponents  may  choose  to  ignore 
our  position  and  insist  on  debating  the  "mistakes 
of  Joseph  Smith,"  or  his  alleged  mistakes.  After  they 
are  dead  and  gone  to  judgment  the  church  will  stand. 

Just  as  an  example,  we  note  a  tract  entitled,  "Mor- 
monism  polygamous,"  issued  by  the  National  Reform 
Association,  and  written  by  the  Reverend  William 
E.  LaRue,  B.  Df  The  Reverend  LaRue,  B.  D.,  is 
rather  impartial,  devoting  very  nearly  one  half  of 
his  article  to  the  Utah  Church,  the  balance  to  the 
Reorganization.  However,  he  does  give  us  a  little 
more  than  half  of  his  attention.  He  advertises  us  as 
being  "anti-polygamous"  in  belief.  For  that  much 
credit  we  thank  him.  But  why  one  who  is  out  to 
fight  polygamy  should  devote  more  than  half  of  his 
attention  to  an  "anti-polygamous"  organization  re- 
mains to  be  explained.  Sometimes  we  suspect  that 


Don't  Forget  the  Main  Issue  407 

all  this  to-do  about  polygamy  is  really  a  smoke  screen 
— a  little  ecclesiastical  camouflage. 

The  burden  of  the  LaRue  article  is  an  effort  to 
prove  that  Joseph  Smith  taught  and  practiced  polyg- 
amy. Because  we  do  not  agree  with  him  on  that 
point  he  concludes  that  we  are  dishonest.  It  is  not 
our  purpose  in  this  article  to  review  the  old  charges ; 
but  merely  to  point  out  that  they  do  not  touch  the 
vital  question  at  issue.  That  man  Jones,  mentioned 
in  the  first  paragraph,  could  never  have  won  his 
argument  by  diverting  the  discussion  to  a  consider- 
ation of  the  character  of  Smith's  ancestors.  Nor 
could  Ingersoll  win  out  on  the  "mistakes  of  Moses." 

Our  people  were  not  converted  to  Joseph  Smith. 
They  were  converted  to  Jesus  Christ,  and  to  certain 
very  positive  doctrines.  These  doctrines  are  true  or 
false,  and  always  have  been  true  or  false.  Nothing 
in  the  life  of  Joseph  Smith  can  in  any  way  affect 
them.  The  statement  that  Joseph  Smith  was  not  a 
polygamist  is  not  found  anywhere  in  our  creed.  Even 
if  some  one  should  prove  that  he  was  a  polygamist 
at  one  time  in  his  career  (which  has  not  been  done) , 
that  would  not  affect  our  religious  conceptions  in  the 
slightest. 

If  our  opponents  cannot  see  that,  it  may  be  their 
fault  or  it  may  merely  be  their  misfortune.  The 
old  Scotchman  sold  a  blind  horse  under  the  guaran- 
tee that  it  was  entirely  without  fault.  Presently  the 
buyer  was  back  with  the  horse  and  with  the  com- 
plaint, "He's  blind,  and  you  said  he  didn't  have  a 


408  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

fault."     The  canny  Scot  replied,  "Mon,  that's  no' 
his  fault.    That's  his  misfortune/' 

It  is  true  that  once  in  a  great  while  an  elder  who 
has  one  eye  on  popularity  and  the  other  on  position 
may  discover  suddenly  that  Joseph  Smith  was  a 
polygamist.  Even  a  bishop,  whose  official  actions 
were  about  to  be  called  into  question,  suddenly  dis- 
covered, almost  over  night,  as  it  were,  that  Joseph 
Smith  had  taught  polygamy.  Exit  bishop  to  the 
rustle  of  angel's  wings.  And  immediately  he  founded 
a  new  church.  It  is  as  though  he  said,  "Joseph  Smith 
was  a  polygamist,  and  upon  this  rock  I  will  build 
my  church."  And  the  gates  of  hell  are  greatly 
amused — if  gates  can  be  said  to  have  any  sense  of 
humor. 

Most  of  our  men  are  not  blind,  either  by  fault  or 
misfortune.  They  know  that  our  position  regarding 
church  organization,  revelations,  spiritual  gifts,  and 
doctrinal  principles,  as  well  as  on  those  important 
economic  principles  now  coming  so  much  to  the  fore, 
equality,  consecration,  and  stewardships,  is  true. 
Nothing  that  Joseph  Smith  did  or  did  not  do  seventy- 
five  years  ago  can  affect  the  matter  one  way  or  the 
other. 

For  that  reason,  in  discussion  they  generally  in- 
sist upon  what  are  termed  "church  propositions." 
They  do  not  bite  on  every  pin  hook  to  which  some 
preacher  may  attach  a  bait.  They  demand  that  the 
other  man  shall  give  half  time  and  set  up  his  own 
church  and  doctrine  for  scrutiny,  and  for  attack 


Don't  Forget  the  Main  Issue  409 

if  found  at  fault.  Some  of  our  opponents  refuse  to 
sign  such  propositions,  preferring  a  one-sided  debate 
and  obviously  wishing  to  keep  as  far  as  possible 
from  principles  and  as  much  as  possible  on  the 
question  of  the  other  man's  character.  They  may 
not  be  logical,  or  sportsmanlike,  or  Christian,  but  it 
is  exceedingly  expedient — from  their  standpoint. 

Many  will  join  the  writer  in  the  following  senti- 
ment :  I  do  not  believe  that  Joseph  Smith  ever  prac- 
ticed or  taught  polygamy.  But  if  I  should  become 
convinced  that  he  did,  while  I  would  feel  exceedingly 
sorry  that  a  family  name  should  suffer  shame,  I 
would  say,  Let  him  meet  the  issue  at  the  bar  of  God 
—I  am  a  minister  for  Jesus  Christ  and  a  preacher 
of  his  gospel ;  my  ministry  will  go  on  absolutely  un- 
changed. 


C 


BLUE  PENCIL  NOTES 

OLD  cream  will  not  cure  a  cancer.     Talcum 
powder  is  no  good  for  leprosy. 


Systems  of  ethics,  philosophies,  "new 
thought/'  and  other  superficial  remedies  will  not 
cure  the  thing  that  ails  humanity. 

It  is  a  very  splendid  thing  for  our  men  to  study 
philosophy,  science,  art,  literature,  all  of  those 
things,  that  their  range  of  knowledge  may  be  in- 
creased. But  those  things  are  to  help  them  in  the 
declaration  of  their  message;  they  do  not  consti- 
tute the  message. 

Some  men  make  a  mistake  right  there.  The  thing 
that  they  are  studying  is  the  thing  that  they  preach. 
If  they  happen  to  be  studying  sociology — that  be- 
comes their  message.  They  may  not  know  it,  per- 
haps, but  it  is  so,  for  the  time  being  at  least.  Or  if 
they  study  economics,  or  psychology,  it  is  the  same. 

Working  that  way,  a  man  may  preach  a  sermon 
as  long  as  Mayor  MacSwiney's  fast  and  feed  no  one. 
The  lecture  room  is  the  place  for  such  dissertations. 
They  are  very  profitable  in  their  place.  The  pulpit 
is  for  the  declaration  of  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ. 

410 


Don't  Forget  the  Main  Issue 411 

These  studies  may  furnish  the  preacher  arguments, 
illustrations,  helps,  collateral  evidences,  but  they  do 
not  furnish  him  his  message.  If  they  did  there  had 
been  no  need  for  an  ordained  ministry  or  for  a  res- 
toration; because  there  are  thousands  of  lecturers, 
unordained,  who  can  do  better  work  in  their  special 
lines  before  the  people  than  the  average  elder  can 
hope  to  do. 

We  were  sent  to  preach  a  rather  definite  message 
to  the  world.  It  is  simple,  yet  by  no  means  narrow. 
And  it  is  the  very  thing  that  the  world  needs  to-day. 
The  essence  of  it  is  faith  in  God,  and  repentance 
from  dead  works,  and  personal  regeneration,  or  re- 
birth, or  spiritual  cleansing,  of  which  baptism  in 
water  is  a  very  splendid  symbol  that  signifies  every- 
thing when  the  man  is  truly  repentant  and  desirous 
to  be  clean,  and  signifies  nothing  when  he  is  not. 
Community  regeneration  follows  individual  regen- 
eration. 

The  more  we  study  the  principles  of  the  gospel 
the  more  beautiful  and  sufficient  they  seem.  Faith 
in  God — that  is  fundamental  in  all  our  preaching, 
and  is  needed  to  be  taught  more  than  ever  before. 
The  man  whose  ministry  does  not  increase  faith 
among  his  hearers  stands  in  jeopardy.  Repentance 
— with  men  and  women  becoming  ever  more  reck- 
less, lawless,  and  Godless,  the  world  over,  every 
minister  needs  as  never  before  to  cry  repentance, 


412  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

that  he  may  move  sinners  toward  God.  Regenera- 
tion, cleansing,  personal  rebirth — that  is  getting 
down  to  the  very  base  of  every  Christian  experience 
and  of  social  regeneration  as  well. 

The  early  elders  were  told  that  they  were  sent  out 
to  teach  and  not  to  be  taught.  That  was  very  true 
concerning  the  principles  of  truth  that  go  to  make 
up  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ.  No  one  has  ever 
taught  us  a  new,  essential  principle ;  to  the  contrary, 
many  truths  that  we  first  taught  have  been  taken  up 
by  the  world.  In  other  realms  there  is  much  for  us 
to  learn.  But  the  man  who  goes  to  other  realms  for 
his  message,  surrenders  at  the  point  where  we  are 
strong  and  impregnable,  and  makes  his  stand  on  the 
ground  where  he  may  be  very  weak. 

Do  not  be  narrow,  or  churlish,  or  ignorant;  but  in 
preaching  let  us  stay  rather  close  to  our  message. 
Under  the  simple  statement  of  the  terms  of  the  gos- 
pel is  a  rich  and  profitable  field  for  instruction  to 
saint  or  sinner,  beginning  with  the  first  lessons  of 
faith  and  running  on  to  the  most  profound  consid- 
eration of  Zionic  problems. 

Our  strength  and  our  safety,  our  originality  and 
our  glory,  lie  in  the  message  committed  to  us  in  the 
revelations  contained  in  the  three  books:  "The  el- 
ders, priests,  and  teachers  of  this  church  shall  teach 
the  principles  of  my  gospel  which  are  in  the  Bible 


Blue  Pencil  Notes 413 

and  the  Book  of  Mormon,  in  the  which  is  the  full- 
ness of  the  gospel;  and  they  shall  observe  the 
covenants  and  church  articles  to  do  them,  and  these 
shall  be  their  teachings,  as  they  shall  be  directed  by 
the  Spirit." — Doctrine  and  Covenants  42 :  5. 

This  is  not  an  argument  against  education.  It  is 
an  argument  in  favor  of  a  proper  use  of  things  edu- 
cation gives  us,  namely  helps  in  the  presentation  of 
our  message,  but  no  substitute  for  it.  A  man  well 
learned  in  all  philosophies  but  ignorant  of  the  con- 
tents of  the  three  books  is  ignorant  indeed.  We  be- 
lieve most  profoundly  in  the  Book  of  Mormon 
statement:  "To  be  learned  is  good,  if  they  hearken 
unto  the  counsels  of  God." 


OUR  INFLUENCE  ON  DOCTRINE 

The  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints  as  a  fac- 
tor in  shaping  the  world's  religious  opinions. 

THE  Latter  Day  Saint  is  frequently  asked, 
"What  is  the  principal  difference  between 
your  church  and  others  in  matters  of  belief?" 

While  attempting  to  reply  with  a  concrete  state- 
ment of  differences,  many  will  occur  to  him ;  for  in- 
stance the  question  of  authority — a  vital  question  on 
which  we  differ  from  nearly  all  others,  whether  Cath- 
olic or  Protestant. 

Yet  he  will  be  struck  with  the  fact  that  many 
differences  which  might  have  been  named  in  years 
gone  by  apparently  do  not  now  exist. 

Many  items  of  doctrine  preached  by  few,  if  any, 
and  opposed  by  most  when  we  began  their  exposi- 
tion, are  now  either  quite  generally  taught  by  many 
orthodox  believers,  or  are  looked  upon  with  much 
more  favor,  and  every  decade  they  receive  a  wider 
acceptance. 

You  may  run  over  the  list:  The  gathering  of  the 
Jews,  the  second  personal  appearing  of  Christ,  divine 
healing,  probation  after  death,  yes,  even  continued 
revelation,  gathering,  tithing,  stewardships,  and  con- 
secration of  properties.  Others  will  occur  to  you, 
perhaps.  At  the  same  time  many  obnoxious  tenets 
opposed  by  us  have  been  dropped  from  the  creeds,  or, 

414 


Our  Influence  on  Doctrine 415 

if  retained,  the  public  promulgation  of  them  has 
ceased. 

Why  this  change?  Many  who  have  opposed  us, 
and  who  yet  oppose  us,  are  much  more  nearly  on 
common  doctrinal  ground  with  us  than  in  years  gone 
by.  Yet  we  have  never  abandoned  a  single  position 
taken  by  us  in  the  beginning. 

The  statement  that  Latter  Day  Saints  have  been 
one  of  the  great  factors  in  forcing  a  revision  of 
the  world's  religious  opinions  would  probably  be 
hooted  by  many  prominent  divines.  Yet  it  is  no 
less  or  more  than  the  truth. 

Our  missionaries  have  for  many  years  carried  on 
an  aggressive  campaign,  reaching  most  parts  of  the 
United  States,  Canada,  England,  Scotland,  and 
Wales,  as  well  as  parts  of  Germany,  France,  Aus- 
tralia, Scandinavia,  New  Zealand,  Palestine,  and  the 
islands  of  the  sea.  Multitudes  have  listened  to  their 
convincing  presentation  of  doctrines,  who  have  been 
loath  to  unite  with  us — but  not  slow  to  borrow  those 
doctrines. 

Thousands  of  influential  clergymen  have  attended 
these  meetings  or  otherwise  investigated  the  mes- 
sage, mostly  with  a  view  to  debate  or  combat.  Very 
many  have  actually  engaged  in  public  debate.  They 
have  found  our  position  on  doctrinal  points  in- 
vincible, and  as  a  sheer  matter  of  self-protection, 
have  themselves  aided  in  the  work  of  creed  revision. 
In  addition  to  this,  most  of  our  adherents,  the  world 


416  '  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

over,  have  been  actively  engaged  in  teaching  their 
neighbors. 

Probably  no  other  religious  movement  ever  re- 
ceived greater  publicity,  and  it  has  had  its  effect. 
Furious  and  constant  attack  has  been  made  upon  us 
and  we  have  met  it  with  strenuous  and  unexpected 
resistance. 

Many  a  lance  has  been  broken  on  the  helmet  of 
truth,  and  the  aggressor  has  retired  with  battered 
theological  mail,  only  to  reappear  as  a  reformer  on 
his  own  account.  It  is  easier  to  imitate  than  to  sur- 
render. John  Alexander  Dowie,  for  instance,  bor- 
rowed most  of  his  ideas  on  doctrine  and  organization 
from  Latter  Day  Saints. 

So  to-day  other  voices  than  ours  are  preaching  our 
doctrine;  voices  of  ministers  whose  particular  de- 
nominations bitterly  opposed  that  doctrine  fifty 
years  ago. 

In  the  one  item  of  the  doctrine  of  the  second  com- 
ing of  Christ,  and  its  imminence,  what  a  change  in 
a  few  years !  The  voice  of  God  to  us,  in  October, 
1831,  was,  " Prepare  ye  the  way  of  the  Lord,  make 
his  paths  straight."  It  was  much  like  the  com- 
mission to  John  the  Baptist,  and  conditions  were 
somewhat  similar. 

Christ  was  coming  in  the  first  instance  with  bless- 
ing. It  was  but  just  that  the  people  be  told,  other- 
wise his  paths  would  not  have  been  straight,  or 
strictly  in  harmony  with  justice.  John  was  sent  as 
an  authoritative  messenger  to  warn ;  yet  his  was  not 


Our  Influence  on  Doctrine  417 

the  only  work.  The  Jews  themselves  preached 
Christ's  coming  and  daily  looked  for  it.  The  Mes- 
sianic idea  was  at  its  height  among  them  when  he 
came ;  it  afterward  declined.  John  warned  them  and 
they  warned  each  other. 

Christ  is  coming  again,  this  time  to  judge  as  well 
as  bless.  It  is  but  just  that  the  people  should  be 
warned  with  authority,  as  they  have  been ;  and  now 
they  themselves  have  taken  up  the  work. 

At  a  so-called  "prophetic  conference,"  held  in  the 
Moody  Bible  Institute  in  Chicago,  in  1914,  a  new 
creed  or  statement  of  faith  was  adopted  by  the  seven- 
teen hundred  or  more  delegates  present,  representing 
churches  all  over  the  United  States  and  Canada.  As 
reported  in  the  Sunday  School  Times  for  March  21, 
1914,  the  ninth  article  of  that  creed  reads : 

"We  believe  in  the  second,  visible  and  imminent 
coming  of  our  Lord  and  Savior  Jesus  Christ,  to 
establish  his  world-wide  kingdom  on  earth." 

Even  more  emphatic  was  the  statement  issued  in 
1917  by  a  group  of  British  divines,  representing 
Baptist,  Presbyterian,  Methodist,  Congregationalist, 
and  Episcopalian  denominations.  Their  "mani- 
festo," called  "The  significance  of  the  hour,"  pub- 
lished in  the  London  Christian  World,  and  later  in 
the  Chicago  Herald  for  December  6,  1917,  was 
signed  by  clergymen  of  world  renown.  The  first 
two  declarations  were  as  follows: 

"First — that  the  present  crisis  points  toward  the 
close  of  the  times  of  the  Gentiles. 
14 


418  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

"Second — that  the  revelation  of  our  Lord  may  be 
expected  at  any  moment,  when  he  will  be  manifested 
as  evidently  as  to  his  disciples  on  the  eve  of  his 
resurrection." 

The  doctrine  of  the  literal,  personal,  second  ad- 
vent of  our  Lord,  so  little  considered  a  generation 
ago,  when  our  elders  set  about  the  task  of  making 
his  paths  straight,  is  thus,  now,  in  most  spectacular 
manner  espoused  and  announced. 

If  there  shall  not  be  a  work  of  getting  ready  as 
well  as  preaching,  when  Christ  comes  he  may  justly 
say,  "Why  are  you  not  ready?  My  paths  were 
straight.  You  were  warned,  and  you  yourselves 
taught  my  coming." 

Zionic  principles,  too,  are  winning  their  way.  As 
I  write  I  have  before  me  a  book  entitled,  Steward- 
ship Starting  Points,  by  Harvey  Reeves  Calkins,  pub- 
lished by  the  Methodist  Book  Concern.  The  author 
says: 

"Moreover,  the  great  free  churches,  the  Methodist, 
the  Presbyterian,  and  the  rest,  have  now  discovered 
in  the  tithe  an  unworked  gold  mine.  As  expert  money 
raisers  who  have  need  of  vast  resources,  many  of  the 
evangelical  churches  are  beginning  to  exploit  the 
tithe.  .  .  ." 

But  he  regards  this  only  as  the  apex  of  the  pyra- 
mid. Stewardship  is  the  base — the  conception  that 
God,  not  man,  is  owner  of  property,  man  being  but 
a  steward.  Of  this  doctrine  he  says : 

"Stewardship  is  the  broad  and  sufficient  founda- 


Our  Influence  on  Doctrine  419 

tion,  ordained  of  God,  for  the  material  maintenance 
of  his  kingdom.  ...  It  is  the  message  of  Christian 
inspiration.  It  is  the  commanding  note  of  virile 
evangelism.  It  will  be  the  saving  word  for  our  gen- 
eration." 

At  times  it  would  seem  that  this  borrowing  of  our 
doctrine  has  robbed  our  message  of  its  force.  Yet 
when  we  take  a  comprehensive  view  of  God's  work 
we  are  satisfied.  Our  work  in  part  is  to  warn  and 
teach.  People  will  be  judged  not  alone  by  what  we 
have  preached  to  them,  but  also  by  what  they  them- 
selves have  preached  to  one  another. 

The  work  of  warning  has  been  more  thorough  and 
comprehensive  than  we  had  thought;  and  we  need 
not  feel  badly  that  others  have  relieved  us  of  a  part 
of  the  responsibility. 

Probably  it  would  be  impossible  to  determine  just 
how  much  Latter  Day  Saint  preaching  has  had  to  do 
with  the  wonderful  changes  in  theology  that  we  have 
noted — but  without  doubt  our  influence  has  been  con- 
siderable. 

It  will  be  noted,  briefly  to  recapitulate,  that  the 
major  voices  among  the  so-called  "sectarian"  de- 
nominations, proclaiming  the  personal,  second  ad- 
vent of  the  Lord  have  risen  after  we  had  preached 
that  doctrine  for  many  years.  The  healing  cults, 
Christian  Science,  the  Emmanuel  Movement,  etc.,  in 
like  manner  arose  long  after  we  had  proclaimed  the 
doctrine  of  divine  healing.  The  same  general  re- 


420  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

marks  apply  to  ecclesiastical  teaching  on  the  finan- 
cial law,  the  return  of  the  Jews — the  latter  now  not 
only  proclaimed  by  leading  divines,  but  also  by 
prominent  rulers  in  the  political  realm. 


PRESENT    TENSE    RELIGION 

JOSEPH  SMITH  restored  the  present  tense  to 
religious   terminology.      He   announced,    "God 
speaks!"     He  was  met  with  emphatic  denial. 
All    Christendom    preferred   the   old   form:    "God 
spoke !"    Nearly  a  hundred  years  have  passed  away 
and  some  unexpected  voices  have  been  lifted  in  sup- 
port of  the  logic  involved  in  Joseph's  declaration. 

Principal  Fairbain,  of  Oxford,  is  at  pains  to  say 
to  the  religious  world,  most  bluntly:  "Agnosticism 
assumed  a  double  incompetency — the  incompetence 
not  only  of  man  to  know  God,  but  of  God  to  make 
himself  known.  But  the  denial  of  competence  is  the 
negation  of  Deity.  For  the  God  who  could  not  speak 
would  not  be  rational,  and  the  God  who  would  not 
speak  would  not  be  moral."  (Quoted  from  The  Bible 
and  Modern  Criticism,  by  Sir  Robert  Anderson.) 

Sir  Oliver  Lodge,  in  the  name  of  Science,  has  an 
equally  pointed  message :  "This  is  the  lesson  science 
has  to  teach  theology — to  look  for  the  action  of  the 
deity,  if  at  all,  then  always:  not  in  the  past  alone, 
nor  only  in  the  future,  but  equally  in  the  present; 
if  its  action  is  not  visible  now  it  never  will  be  and 
never  has  been  visible." — Science  and  Immortality. 

I  venture  the  assertion  that  when  Joseph  Smith 
went  into  the  woods  to  pray  on  that  spring  day  one 
hundred  years  ago,  he  went  not  merely  as  an  indi- 

421 


422  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

vidual.  Though  perhaps  without  written  credentials, 
he  went  as  the  representative  of  hundreds  and 
thousands  of  men  and  women  who  were  unable  from 
the  crazy  patchwork  of  denominationalism  to  piece 
an  orderly  system  that  would  satisfy  the  desire  of 
their  souls.  Confused  by  conflicting  and  contra- 
dictory claims,  by  the  affirmation  of  half  truths  and 
the  negation  of  vital  principles,  he  personally,  as 
their  representative,  sought  God.  He  reasoned  with 
Lodge,  "Why  look  for  the  manifestation  of  Deity  in 
the  past  alone  or  only  in  the  future?  Why  not  seek 
him  now?"  And  may  I  make  so  bold  as  to  affirm, 
with  Fairbain,  that  under  those  circumstances, 
"The  God  who  could  not  speak  would  not  be  rational, 
and  the  God  who  would  not  speak  would  not  be 
moral." 

Lyman  Abbott  has  a  message,  also :  "The  prophets, 
we  are  told,  spoke  as  they  were  moved,  inspired,  or 
guided  by  the  Spirit  of  God.  There  is  no  reason  to 
suppose  that  God  has  ceased  to  move  upon  the  spirits 
of  men  and  to  inspire  and  guide  them.  Certainly 
there  is  nothing  in  the  New  Testament  to  warrant 
any  such  opinion." — The  Outlook,  September  8,  1915. 

Walter  Rauschenbusch  is  clear-cut  in  his  descrip- 
tion of  the  ancient  prophets:  "They  went  to  school 
with  a  living  God  that  was  then  at  work  in  his  world, 
and  not  with  a  God  who  had  acted  long  ago  and  put 
it  down  in  a  book." — Christianity  and  The  Social 
Crisis. 

Well,  why  not  now  go  to  school  with  a  living  God 


Present  Tense  Religion  423 

at  work  in  the  world,  and  not  to  one  who  acted  long 
ago  and  wrote  it  all  down  in  a  book  and  retired  far 
away  behind  the  clouds  ?  Why  not,  with  Lodge,  look 
for  the  revelations  of  God,  if  at  all,  then  always, 
and  not  in  the  past  alone  or  only  in  the  future? 
Why  not  conclude  with  Fairbain  that  the  God  who 
cannot  speak  is  not  rational,  and  the  God  who  will 
not  speak  is  not  moral? 

Sometime  ago  we  were  talking  with  a  certain 
minister.  He  questioned  us  about  our  belief  in  the 
Bible.  We  answered:  "Yes,  we  believe  the  Bible. 
Possibly  we  believe  some  parts  of  it  that  you  do  not 
believe." 

He  did  not  think  that  possible,  so  we  referred  him 
to  the  closing  verses  of  the  sixteenth  chapter  of 
Mark,  where  certain  signs  are  enumerated,  and  it  is 
said  that  they  shall  follow  the  believer.  We  asked 
him  if  he  believed  that. 

"Yes,"  he  answered,  "I  believe  that  they  did  fol- 
low." 

"That,"  we  replied,  "is  one  difference  between  you 
and  us.  You  say  they  did  follow.  We  say  they  do 
follow.  One  is  religion  in  the  past  tense;  the  other 
is  religion  in  the  present  tense." 

That  line  was  drawn  many  years  ago.  Joseph 
Smith  says  that  shortly  after  he  had  received  his 
first  vision,  he  innocently  told  a  Methodist  minister 
about  it,  and  to  his  surprise  it  was  treated  with  con- 
tempt, the  minister  "saying  it  was  all  of  the  Devil ; 
that  there  was  no  such  thing  as  visions  or  revelations 


424  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

in  these  days;  that  all  such  things  had  ceased  with 
the  apostles,  and  that  there  never  would  be  any  more 
of  them." 

So  we  see  that  in  the  very  beginning  of  his  min- 
istry, when  he  came  to  the  world  with  the  message, 
"God  is  at  work  in  the  world,"  he  was  met  by  the 
clergy  of  the  day  with  the  reply,  "God  used  to  be  at 
work  in  the  world." 

His  was  a  religion  in  the  present  tense;  theirs  a 
religion  in  the  past  tense. 

People  of  every  age  recount  the  wonderful  things 
that  God  did  in  a  preceding  age ;  they  are  very  angry 
when  a  prophet  comes  telling  them  that  God  is  doing 
something  now. 

Jeremiah  told  the  children  of  Israel :  "Behold  the 
days  come,  saith  the  Lord,  that  it  shall  no  more  be 
said,  The  Lord  liveth,  that  brought  the  children  of 
Israel  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt ;  but,  the  Lord  liveth, 
that  brought  the  children  of  Israel  from  the  land  of 
the  north,  and  from  all  lands  whither  he  hath  driven 
them:  and  I  will  bring  them  again  into  their  land 
that  I  gave  unto  their  fathers." — Jeremiah  16 :  14, 
15. 

The  Jews  lived  in  the  past;  they  still  live  in  the 
past ;  but  the  Lord  says  that  the  time  will  come  when 
they  will  no  longer  talk  about  the  wonderful  things 
that  God  did  when  he  led  them  out  of  Egypt,  but  will 
begin  to  perceive  the  wonderful  things  of  their  own 
time. 

When  Jesus  came  he  found  the  Jews  living  in  the 


Present  Tense  Religion  425 

past.  They  were  always  talking  about  the  time  when 
God  led  them  out  of  Egypt;  but  they  were  blind  to 
the  things  that  he  was  doing  for  them  then.  Paul 
truly  said:  "Blindness  hath  happened  in  part  unto 
Israel."  They  could  see  the  things  that  God  had 
done  ages  before ;  but  they  were  blind  to  the  things 
that  he  was  doing  in  their  midst  at  that  time. 

They  held  their  Passover  Feast  regularly  and  re- 
ligiously to  commemorate  the  time  when  God  caused 
the  angel  of  death  to  pass  them  by,  and  helped  them 
to  escape  from  Egypt;  but  when  the  Son  of  God 
came  to  observe  the  Passover  with  them  they  were 
unable  to  perceive  that  fact.  The  most  wonderful 
event  of  all  history  occurred  in  their  midst  unnoticed. 
Having  ears  they  heard  not,  having  eyes  they  saw 
not. 

Their  religion  was  distinctly  of  the  past.  When 
Stephen  preached  his  great  sermon  to  them  (Acts 
7)  he  diplomatically  began  with  the  past.  As  long 
as  he  confined  himself  to  the  things  that  God  had 
done  in  the  days  of  Abraham,  Moses,  and  Solomon, 
they  listened  patiently;  but  as  soon  as  he  began  to 
tell  them  what  God  was  doing  then,  and  what  they 
were  doing,  they  "gnashed  on  him  with  their  teeth," 
and  "cast  him  out  of  the  city  and  stoned  him." 

Opposed  to  this  past-tense  religion  is  the  very 
name  of  Jesus :  "Behold,  a  virgin  shall  be  with  child, 
and  shall  bring  forth  a  son,  and  they  shall  call  his 
name  Emmanuel,  which  being  interpreted  is,  God 
with  us." — Matthew  1 :  23. 


426  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

That  is  the  idea,  "God  with  us'1 — not  the  God  who 
used  to  be  with  some  one  else  long  ages  ago,  but  "God 
with  us." 

The  name  of  God,  as  given  to  Moses,  as  rendered 
in  the  English  version,  conveys  a  similar  idea :  "Thus 
shalt  thou  say  unto  the  children  of  Israel,  I  AM  hath 
sent  me  unto  you."  (Exodus  3 :  14.) 

Scholars  are  divided  as  to  the  origin  and  original 
meaning  of  the  word  from  which  this  is  derived.  The 
Jews  regarded  it  with  awe,  and  in  reading  the  Old 
Testament  never  pronounced  that  word.  Josephus 
said  that  it  was  not  lawful  for  him  to  write  it,  so  it 
does  not  appear  in  his  work.  It  was  the  "Ineffable 
Name."  But  as  it  stands  in  our  modern  rendition, 
it  conveys  a  vital  thought — not  the  God  who  lived  in 
the  days  of  Abraham,  alone,  not  the  God  of  Solomon, 
not  the  God  who  was,  but  the  great  "I  AM."  .The 
doctrine  of  continued  revelation  is  based  on  the  very 
nature  of  God  as  an  unchangeable  being,  as  well  as 
in  the  continuity  of  human  needs. 

Paul's  religion  was  eminently  present-tense  re- 
ligion. He  wrote :  "The  manifestation  of  the  Spirit 
is  given  to  every  man."  The  Jews,  like  our  good 
ministerial  friend,  rendered  it,  "The  manifestations 
of  the  Spirit  were  given." 

But  while  the  Jews  affirmed  that  these  things  used 
to  be,  Paul  declared,  "They  are" 

History  repeats  itself.  Where  Paul  stood  in  59 
A.  D.,  Joseph  Smith  stood  in  1830  A.  D. 

Why  all  this  talk  about  that  which  used  to  be?    Is 


Present  Tense  Religion  427 

God  dead?  No;  for  he  is  "from  everlasting  to  ever- 
lasting." Has  God  changed?  No;  for  he  says,  "I 
am  God;  I  change  not/'  That  is  a  fundamental 
principle  of  his  Godhood.  Our  hope  rests  on  that 
thought.  If  he  changes  from  day  to  day,  we  know 
not  where  nor  how  to  find  him,  and  our  case  is  hope- 
less. But  he  is  God,  and  he  changes  not. 

Have  the  people  changed?  John  Wesley  said  that 
the  reason  the  gifts  had  ceased,  was  not,  as  some  sup- 
posed, because  they  were  no  longer  needed,  but  be- 
cause the  Christians  had  "turned  heathen/'  As  to 
the  truth  of  his  statement  the  reader  may  judge.  It 
is  quite  evident,  however,  that  man,  not  God,  has 
changed.  Christians  of  this  age,  like  the  Jews  in 
the  days  of  Jesus,  are  looking  at  the  past.  Blindness 
"in  part"  has  happened  unto  them.  They  can  see  the 
wonderful  things  that  the  apostles  did,  but  they 
cannot  perceive  the  wonderful  things  that  God  is 
doing  now. 

We  can  see  how  necessary  it  was  for  prophets  to 
come  to  this  age  with  the  message  that  Joseph  Smith 
and  Sidney  Rigdon  bore :  "And,  now,  after  the  many 
testimonies  which  have  been  given  of  him,  this  is  the 
testimony,  last  of  all,  which  we  give  of  him,  that  he 
lives;  for  we  saw  him,  even  on  the  right  hand  of 
God/' — Doctrine  and  Covenants  76 :  3. 


THE  RESTORATION 

(Sermon  in  Zion  Builder  Series  for  Young  People,  at  Lamoni, 

Iowa.) 

I  HAVE  two  texts,  the  first  being  found  in  Isaiah 
29:14: 

"Therefore,  behold,  I  will  proceed  to  do  a 
marvelous  work  among  this  people,  even  a  marvel- 
ous work  and  a  wonder:  for  the  wisdom  of  their 
wise  men  shall  perish,  and  the  understanding  of  their 
prudent  men  shall  be  hid." 

The  other  text  is  taken  from  rather  an  unusual 
source.  It  is  from  the  writings  of  Sir  Oliver  Lodge 
in  his  book  called  Science  and  Immortality: 

"This  is  the  lesson  science  has  to  teach  theology — 
to  look  for  the  action  of  the  deity,  if  at  all,  then  al- 
ways; not  in  the  past  alone,  nor  only  in  the  future, 
but  equally  in  the  present ;  if  its  action  is  not  visible 
now  it  never  will  be  and  never  has  been  visible." 

That  is  strikingly  in  harmony  with  the  theory  we 
have  been  preaching  for  nearly  one  hundred  years: 
that  we  should  not  look  back  alone  to  the  Isle  of 
Patmos  for  revelation,  or  forward  to  the  pearly 
gates,  but  should  look  for  the  revelation  and  mani- 
festation of  God  now — as  much  as  at  any  time  in  the 
history  of  the  world. 

THE  APOSTASY 

There  is  no  question  that  Jesus  Christ  came  and 
organized  a  church.  Well,  some  people  question  it, 
but  Christ  himself  said,  "I  will  build  my  church" 

428 


The  Restoration  429 

(Matthew  16:  18),  and  it  is  very  clear  that  he  did 
organize  a  church.  It  is  equally  clear  that  following 
the  death  of  the  Master  and  his  apostles  there  pres- 
ently ensued  a  great  and  complete  apostasy.  It  had 
begun  in  the  days  of  the  apostles.  It  progressed 
until  there  was  scarcely  a  vestige  left  of  the  gospel, 
and  the  church  of  Christ  had  been  replaced  by  an- 
other. There  is  scriptural  warrant  for  this  state- 
ment. The  prophets  predicted  it.  I  have  not  time 
to-night  to  read  the  predictions,  but  if  anyone  here 
should  be  taking  notes  he  may  refer  to  Isaiah  24: 
1-6;  Amos  8:  11,  12;  Acts  20:  28-31;  Timothy  4:3, 
4 ;  Revelation  12 :  1-6,  and  many  others  might  be  re- 
ferred to.  The  Apostle  Paul  says  that  for  three 
years  he  ceased  not  day  or  night  to  warn  the  people 
of  the  great  apostasy  that  was  coming. 

The  fact  that  it  did  actually  occur  is  attested  by 
history,  both  ecclesiastical  and  secular.  We  have  but 
to  read  the  record  of  the  Dark  Ages  to  recognize  that 
the  light  of  literature  and  art  went  out  and  the  world 
became  unspeakably  corrupt;  and  if  such  a  thing 
were  possible,  the  church  was  worse  than  the  world. 
The  church  stooped  to  sell  license  to  commit  sin  in 
the  name  of  God,  and  the  price  was  fixed  according 
to  the  degree  of  depravity  and  turpitude  of  the 
crime.  This  sale  of  "indulgences"  was  what  aroused 
the  righteous  indignation  of  Martin  Luther. 

That  there  was  a  great  apostasy  is  admitted  by  all 
Protestant  churches — otherwise  there  would  be  no 
need  for  Protestant  churches.  If  there  were  no  great 


430          The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

\ 

and  complete  apostasy,  so  that  authority  to  repre- 
sent God  was  lost,  we  ought  all  of  us  to  be  Catholics. 
Every  Protestant  spire  that  points  towards  heaven 
is  a  testimony  that  there  was  an  apostasy — otherwise 
on  top  of  that  spire  there  would  be  a  cross  of  gold. 
All  Protestants,  then,  are  agreed  that  there  was  an 
apostasy.  It  was  so  complete  that  the  church  that 
started  out  as  representing  Christ  was  not  to  be 
found  on  earth. 

REFORMATION  OR  RESTORATION 

We  might  then  ask  ourselves :  What  was  the  way 
of  recovery  out  of  that  condition?  We  have  our 
choice  between  two  propositions;  that  is,  we  may 
decide  which  one  appears  the  more  logical  to  us,  ref- 
ormation or  restoration. 

I  think  that  I  can  put  this  up  to  you  young  people 
so  you  can  see  about  how  the  choice  lies;  and  I  be- 
lieve that  the  illustration  I  use  will  find  warrant  in 
scripture,  as  I  will  show  you  a  moment  later.  Sup- 
pose that  one  of  you  young  men  prior  to  the  late  war 
had  espoused  a  beautiful  girl  and  had  taken  her  to 
be  your  companion.  You  were  then  away  overseas 
for  a  term  of  years.  While  you  were  gone,  for  some 
reason  or  other,  conditions  became  so  unendurable 
in  the  community  that  your  bride  removed  herself 
to  a  distant  place  of  hiding,  and  in  her  absence  a 
wanton,  degraded  creature  came  in  and  occupied 
your  home. 

When  the  time  for  your  return  drew  near,  which 
would  you  be  for,  reformation  or  restoration?  You 


The  Restoration  431 

would  be  all  for  restoration.  It  would  not  satisfy 
you  to  have  some  clergyman  go  in  and  attempt  to 
induce  that  creature  to  leave  off  the  worst  of  her 
ways  and  then  you  come  back  and  recognize  her  as 
your  wife.  You  would  say,  "Give  me  back  my  beauti- 
ful bride  that  I  have  espoused." 

John  tells  us  in  the  12th  chapter  of  Revelation  that 
he  saw  a  beautiful  woman,  which  all  agree  repre- 
sented the  church,  clothed  in  the  glory  of  the  sun, 
representing  the  authority  and  power  of  God,  having 
the  moon  under  her  feet,  and  on  her  head  a  crown  of 
twelve  stars;  but  he  saw  there  was  a  monster  that 
made  war  against  the  woman,  and  she  fled  away  into 
the  wilderness  and  was  gone. 

In  the  17th  chapter  of  Revelation  he  says  that  in 
her  place  he  saw  a  degraded  woman,  clothed  in 
scarlet  and  purple,  with  a  cup  in  her  hand,  filled 
with  iniquities,  seated  on  a  beast,  and  written  on  her 
forehead  was  "Mystery,  Babylon  the  Great,  The 
mother  of  harlots  and  abominations  of  the  earth." 
This  thing  had  come  in  and  taken  the  place  of  the 
pure  church  that  Jesus  Christ  had  left  on  earth  as 
his  bride.  Now,  when  the  time  approaches  for  him 
to  come  again,  which  will  appeal  to  him,  reformation 
or  restoration? 

THE    REFORMATION 

Let  us  for  a  brief  moment  take  up  a  consideration 
"of  the  Reformation.  There  is  no  question  that  the 
reformers  were  very  brave  and  some  of  them  very 
noble  men.  They  did  a  splendid  work  of  prepara- 


432  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

tion ;  still  it  is  true  that  there  ensued  and  there  still 
remains  endless  division  and  confusion  upon  that 
question,  and  Protestantism  to-day  seems  to  be 
doomed  to  failure.  Every  effort  to  consolidate  and 
unite  ends  in  failure. 

It  is  true,  too,  that  the  reformers  themselves 
seemed,  many  of  them,  to  look  forward  to  some- 
thing infinitely  greater  than  they  had  been  able  to 
accomplish ;  and  they  did  not  claim  to  have  revelation 
or  to  be  sent  of  God  to  restore  the  ancient  order. 

We  might  briefly  note  some  statements  made  by 
some  of  them.  For  instance,  in  a  sermon  that  John 
Wesley  preached  on  "The  signs  of  the  times,"  he 
says : 

"The  signs  of  the  times  we  have  reason  to  believe 
are  at  hand,  if  they  are  not  already  begun,  are  what 

many  pious  men  have  termed  the  latter-day  glory 

And  yet  the  wise  men  of  the  world,  men  of  learning 
and  renown,  cannot  understand  what  we  mean  by 
talking  of  an  extraordinary  work  of  God.  They  can- 
not discern  the  signs  of  these  times.  They  see  no 
signs  at  all  of  God  arising  to  maintain  his  own  cause, 
and  set  up  his  kingdom  over  all  the  earth." 

Roger  Williams,  identified  with  the  pioneers  of  the 
Baptist  Church,  said : 

"I  conceive  that  the  apostasy  of  anti-Christ  has  so 
far  corrupted  all  that  there  can  be  no  recovery  out 
of  that  apostasy  till  Christ  shall  send  forth  new 
apostles  to  plant  churches  anew." 

Alexander  Campbell  says: 


The  Restoration  433 

"Since  the  full  development  of  the  great  apostasy 
foretold  by  the  prophets  and  apostles,  numerous  at- 
tempts at  reformation  have  been  made.  .  .  . 

"Society,  indeed,  may  be  found  among  us  far  in 
advance  of  others  in  their  progress  toward  the  an- 
cient order  of  things,  but  we  know  of  none  that  have 
fully  attained  to  that  model.  .  .  . 

"The  practical  result  of  all  creeds,  reformations, 
and  improvements  and  the  expectations  and  longings 
of  society  warrant  the  conclusion  that  some  new 
revelation  or  some  new  development  of  the  revelation 
of  God  must  be  made  before  the  hopes  and  expec- 
tations of  all  true  Christians  can  be  realized  or 
Christianity  can  save  and  reform  the  nations  of  this 
world.  We  want  the  old  gospel  back,  and  sustained 
by  the  ancient  order  of  things." — Christian  System. 

We  say  amen  to  these  statements.  We  have  the 
old  gospel  back,  sustained  by  the  ancient  order.  God 
has  arisen  to  maintain  his  cause,  and  has  sent 
apostles  anew. 

THE    RESTORATION 

Next  let  us  consider  the  Restoration.  It  too  was 
foretold  in  prophecy.  Many  scriptural  references 
might  be  given,  but  time  will  not  permit  us  to  read 
at  length  to-night.  We  may  cite  you  to  the  one  al- 
ready quoted  from  Isaiah  29,  (and  you  will  do  well 
to  read  it  all,)  where  the  Lord  says: 

"Therefore,  behold,  I  will  proceed  to  do  a  marvel- 
ous work  among  this  people,  even  a  marvelous  work 
and  a  wonder:  for  the  wisdom  of  their  wise  men 


434  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

shall  perish,  and  the  understanding  of  their  prudent 
men  shall  be  hid." 

The  context  shows  that  this  was  to  be  done  at 
about  the  time  when  the  Holy  Land  was  restored  to 
its  fertility,  and  about  the  time  when  a  sealed  book 
(the  Book  of  Mormon)  should  come  forth  and  be 
given  to  the  world  by  an  unlearned  man  (Joseph 
Smith) .  While  in  Revelation,  John  says : 

"I  saw  another  angel  flying  in  the  midst  of  heaven, 
having  the  everlasting  gospel  to  preach  unto  them 
that  dwell  on  the  earth,  and  to  every  nation,  and 
kindred,  and  tongue,  and  people,  saying  with  a  loud 
voice,  Fear  God,  and  give  glory  to  him ;  for  the  hour 
of  his  judgment  is  come." — Revelation  14 :  6,  7. 

Why  should  it  be  necessary  for  any  angel  to  bring 
the  gospel  back  again  to  earth  in  the  hour  of  God's 
judgments  if  it  had  always  been  here,  and  why  did 
the  Master  say  that  this  gospel  should  be  preached 
in  all  the  world  "for  a  witness  to  all  people,"  and 
then  should  "the  end  come,"  if  it  had  always  been 
preached?  Would  it  be  any  sign  of  the  end  when  it 
went  abroad  in  the  last  days  if  it  had  been  preached 
for  centuries? 

Let  us  tell  you  the  story  of  the  Restoration :  First 
we  will  have  to  understand  to  a  degree  the  condition 
of  confusion  and  disagreement  that  existed  in  the 
religious  world  in  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth 
century.  When  I  think  about  it  I  am  reminded  of 
the  old  story  of  the  Japanese  mirror. 

According  to  the  story  there  was  a  young  Japanese 


The  Restoratoin  435 

peasant  who  went  to  the  city  for  the  first  time  in  his 
life,  and  passing  a  shop  he  looked  in  the  window  and 
there  he  saw  a  mirror,  the  first  one  he  had  ever 
looked  into.  Looking  into  it,  what  do  you  think  he 
saw?  He  saw,  or  at  least  he  thought  he  saw,  the 
spirit  of  his  father.  He  saw  a  man  there  looking 
exactly  as  his  father  looked  as  he  remembered  him. 

Being  very  reverent  toward  his  ancestors,  he  took 
all  the  money  he  had  and  purchased  this  mirror. 
Taking  it  home  he  climbed  up  into  the  attic  and  built 
a  little  altar  and  put  the  mirror  on  the  altar.  Every 
day  he  went  up  arid  made  an  offering  and  worshiped 
and  communed  with  the  spirit  of  his  father.  Every- 
thing would  have  gone  very  well,  only  he  was  a  mar- 
ried man,  and  his  wife,  like  a  few  women,  was 
curious.  She  wondered  why  her  husband  went  into 
the  attic  every  day. 

So  one  day  when  he  was  out  in  the  field  she  la- 
boriously climbed  the  ladder  and  went  into  the  attic 
and  looked  into  the  mirror.  What  did  she  see  ?  Why, 
she  saw  a  young,  and  as  she  thought,  a  very  hand- 
some woman,  and  immediately  she  said,  "The  per- 
fidious wretch !  I  know  now  why  he  comes  up  here 
each  day !  He  comes  to  meet  with  that  woman !" 

So  down  the  ladder  she  went,  and  when  the  hus- 
band came  home  there  was  trouble.  He  swore  he 
saw  a  man  and  she  swore  she  saw  a  woman.  So  to 
settle  the  matter  they  sent  for  a  very  old  witch  who 
lived  in  the  neighborhood,  who  climbed  the  ladder 
with  many  groans,  looked  into  the  mirror,  and  came 


436  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

down  and  said,  "You  are  both  fools.  It  is  an  old, 
old  woman  in  the  mirror,  and  there  is  no  cause  to  be 
jealous."  And  then  all  three  had  a  quarrel. 

Each  one  saw  something;  but  no  one  of  them  had 
any  toleration  for  what  the  others  saw.  If  there  had 
been  some  one  there  who  understood  the  situation, — 
the  man  who  made  the  mirror,  for  instance, — he 
could  have  put  them  in  possession  of  the  absolute 
truth ;  but,  as  it  was,  they  went  on  with  their  quarrel. 

So  in  these  latter  days  men  looked  into  the  mirror 
of  truth,  and  one  man  looking  into  it  said:  "I  see 
absolutely  nothing  but  predestination.  A  man  is 
born  to  go  to  heaven  or  to  hell  and  that  is  all  there 
is  to  it.  He  can  do  nothing  about  it.  I  am  a  Cal- 
vinist." 

And  another  man  looked  into  it  and  he  said,  "I 
see  absolutely  nothing  but  free  grace.  All  any  man 
has  to  do  is  to  believe  in  Jesus  Christ  and  he  will  be 
saved." 

And  another  man  looked  into  it  and  he  said,  "I 
see  cathedrals  and  monasteries  and  altars  and 
candles  and  beads  and  monks  and  robes  and  incense 
and  rites  and  pomp  and  ceremony.  I  am  a  high 
church  man." 

And  another  man  looked  into  it  and  said,  "Thou 
art  mistaken.  I  see  no  cathedrals,  no  monks,  no 
ceremonies,  no  rites.  I  see  nothing  but  a  patient 
awaiting  for  the  Spirit.  I  am  a  Quaker." 

And  so  they  quarreled.  So  it  was  at  the  beginning 
of  the  nineteenth  century,  in  the  year  1820,  when  a 


The  Restoration  437 

great  revival  fostered  by  leading  denominations  was 
held  in  the  State  of  New  York  in  the  vicinity  of 
Palmyra.  For  a  while  all  went  lovely  and  many  were 
interested,  and  among  them  was  a  young  man,  or  a 
boy,  fifteen  years  old,  named  Joseph  Smith.  (I  sup- 
pose that  many  of  the  churches  wish  to  God  that 
they  had  never  held  that  revival.) 

Joseph  Smith  became  most  profoundly  interested 
in  religion  and  desired  the  salvation  of  his  soul. 
But  unfortunately,  when  the  revival  ended  it  broke 
up  in  confusion  and  strife,  with  a  quarrel  over  the 
converts,  and  he  was  pulled  here  and  pulled  there, 
and  told,  "Here  is  the  truth,"  or  "There  is  the  truth," 
until  he  was  at  his  wit's  end.  But  he  happened  to 
read  in  James,  "If  any  of  you  lack  wisdom,  let  him 
ask  of  God,  that  giveth  to  all  men  liberally,  and  up- 
braideth  not;  and  it  shall  be  given  him." — James 
1:5. 

Not  finding  any  time  limit  on  that  promise,  he 
said,  "I  will  go  to  the  One  who  made  the  mirror  and 
he  will  tell  me  the  absolute  truth."  So  he  went  out 
into  the  woods  and  kneeled  down  and  prayed.  It 
was  a  beautiful  day  early  in  the  spring,  and  he  tells 
us  that  scarcely  had  he  begun  to  pray  when  he  was 
seized  upon  by  the  power  of  darkness ;  t  but  he  re- 
membered the  reason  for  his  prayer  and  called  upon 
God  to  help  him.  Immediately  the  darkness  was  re- 
buked and  removed  and  a  great  light  shone  down 
from  heaven  and  he  saw  two  personages,  and  one  of 


438  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

them  said,  pointing  to  the  other,  "This  is  my  beloved 
Son ;  hear  ye  him." 

That  is  the  keynote  of  all  our  message.  What  does 
Jesus  say  on  any  given  subject?  "Hear  ye  him." 
And  so  in  our  "epitome  of  faith"  we  say  that  in  all 
matter  of  controversy  the  word  of  God  should  be  the 
end  of  dispute.  If  Jesus  says,  "Why  tarriest  thou, 
arise,  and  be  baptized,  and  wash  away  thy  sins,"  that 
settles  the  matter.  If  he  says  that  he  set  in  his 
church  apostles,  prophets,  evangelists,  and  teachers, 
etc.,  for  us  that  is  the  end  of  the  controversy. 

Three  years  later  this  young  man  received  a  visit 
from  an  angel  who  told  him  many  things;  among 
others  that  his  name  should  be  had  for  good  and  evil 
among  all  the  nations  of  the  earth ;  that  the  time  was 
coming  for  the  Jews  to  gather  back  to  Jerusalem; 
about  the  coming  forth  of  a  sealed  book;  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  church,  and  many  other  things.  In 
1829  the  priesthood  was  restored.  April  6,  1830,  by 
divine  commandment  the  church  was  organized  and 
began  its  work  of  preaching  the  gospel  of  Jesus 
Christ. 

RELIGIOUS    CONCEPTS    OF   THE  RESTORATION 

Before  my  time  is  gone,  I  wish  to  enter  upon  a 
consideration  of  some  of  the  great  religious  con*- 
cepts  of  this  movement  that  we  call  the  Restoration. 
I  want  to  examine  eight  of  the  great  religious  con- 
cepts that  Joseph  Smith  and  his  associates  preached 
to  the  world.  Every  religious  institution  is  judged 
by  its  religious  ideals  and  concepts,  and  every  re- 


The  Restoration  439 

ligious  leader  must  be  judged  by  the  religious  con- 
cepts he  preaches  to  the  world. 

CONTINUED  REVELATION 

The  first  of  these  I  wish  to  notice  is  the  idea  of 
restored  revelation.  You  can  hardly  imagine  what 
a  strange  thought  that  was,  because  the  religious 
world  was  absolutely  a  unit  on  one  thing — if  they 
did  not  agree  on  anything  else,  they  agreed  on  this 
one  thing,  that  revelation  had  ceased.  They  were 
still  pointing  to  the  closing  chapters  of  Revelation, 
where  it  says  no  man  shall  add  to  the  words  of  this 
book,  when  John,  of  course,  had  only  the  book  of 
Revelation  in  mind,  the  Bible  not  being  in  existence 
when  he  said  no  man  shall  add  to  this  book;  also  no 
man  may  add  to  the  revelations  of  God,  but  God 
himself  may  add  at  any  time  if  he  sees  fit. 

So  it  was  a  strange  thing  when  a  boy  came  out  of 
the  woods  where  he  had  gone  to  take  God  at  his 
word,  and  said,  "I  have  had  a  revelation."  The  very 
first  man  (a  minister)  he  told  it  to  said,  "It  is  of  the 
Devil.  God  doesn't  speak  any  more!"  If  the  re- 
ligious world  had  said,  We  will  judge  that  revelation 
and  see  whether  it  is  from  God  or  the  Devil,  that 
would  have  been  a  logical  position;  but  when  they 
said,  "God  speaks  no  more  at  all,"  it  was  an  illogical 
and  unscriptural  position  to  take.  It  seems  strange 
that  one  hundred  years  later  Sir  Oliver  Lodge,  presi- 
dent of  the  British  Association  for  the  Advancement 
of  Science,  should  have  to  stand  up  and  say  to  these 
gentlemen : 


440  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

"Gentlemen,  this  is  the  lesson  that  science  has  to 
teach  to  theology — to  look  for  the  action  of  the  deity; 
if  at  all,  then  always ;  not  in  the  past  alone,  nor  only 
in  the  future,  but  equally  in  the  present ;  if  its  action 
is  not  visible  now  it  never  will  be  and  never  has  been 
visible/' 

The  message  of  this  young  man  was  out  of  har- 
mony neither  with  science  nor  religion.  God  says, 
"I  am  the  Lord,  I  change  not." — Malachi  3:6.  He 
is  in  harmony  with  the  great  laws  of  nature  that 
go  on  forever  without  deviation.  This,  then,  was  one 
of  the  first  concepts  presented  to  the  world  by  this 
people — an  unchangeable  God  speaking  to  his  people 
and  blessing  them  as  of  old. 

THE    SECOND    ADVENT    OF  JESUS 

The  next  concept  that  I  wish  to  notice  is  the  idea 
of  the  second  coming  of  Jesus  Christ.  Latter  Day 
Saints  were  told  early,  even  before  the  organization 
of  the  church,  that  there  must  be  a  work  of  prepara- 
tion for  the  coming  of  Christ.  That  is  why  they  some- 
times called  themselves  Latter  Day  Saints,  and  the 
church  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day 
Saints,  because  they  believe  that  these  are  the  latter 
days,  immediately  preceding  the  return  of  our  Lord 
and  Master.  There  were  few,  if  any,  then  who  be- 
lieved that  Christ  would  come  again  in  person.  It 
was  all  to  be  spiritual,  and  the  only  coming  of  Christ 
that  ever  would  occur  would  be  when  he  came  in 
spirit  to  any  individual  who  wished  to  receive  him. 

But  I  want  to  read  to  you  some  things  that  show  a 


The  Restoration  441 

most  striking  change  that  has  occurred  in  senti- 
ment since  that  great  concept  was  presented  to  the 
world  by  Joseph  Smith.  During  the  late  war  there 
was  published  what  was  called  a  manifesto,  appear- 
ing in  the  London  Christian  World  and  quoted  in  the 
Chicago  Herald  for  December  6,  1917.  It  was  put 
forth  by  some  of  the  greatest  of  the  British  min- 
isters, representing  Baptists,  Methodists,  Congre- 
gationalists,  and  Presbyterians,  such  men  as  G. 
Campbell  Morgan,  A.  C.  Dixon,  and  others.  I  have 
not  time  to  read  all  of  it,  but  this  manifesto,  which 
attracted  world- wide  attention  at  the  time,  says : 

"First — That  the  present  crisis  points  toward  the 
close  of  the  times  of  the  Gentiles. 

"Second — That  the  revelation  of  our  Lord  may  be 
expected  at  any  moment,  when  he  will  be  manifested 
as  evidently  as  to  his  disciples  on  the  evening  of  his 
resurrection. 

"Third — That  the  completed  church  will  be  trans- 
lated, to  be  'forever  with  the  Lord/ 

"Fourth — That  Israel  will  be  restored  to  its  own 
land  in  unbelief,  and  be  afterward  converted  by  the 
appearance  of  Christ  on  its  behalf. 

"Fifth — That  all  human  schemes  of  reconstruction 
must  be  subsidiary  to  the  second  coming  of  our  Lord, 
because  all  nations  will  be  subject  to  his  rule. 

"Sixth — That  under  the  reign  of  Christ  there  will 
be  a  further  great  effusion  of  the  Holy  Spirit  on  all 
flesh. 

"Seventh — That  the  truths  embodied  in  this  state- 


442  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

merit  are  of  the  utmost  practical  value  in  determin- 
ing Christian  character  and  action  with  reference 
to  the  pressing  problems  of  the  hour." 

Here  are  three  important  events  that  they  predict : 
The  return  of  the  Jews;  the  soon  coming  of  Christ 
in  person ;  and  the  millennial  reign.  But  what  seems 
strange  to  me  is  that  an  obscure  and  unlettered  boy 
should  have  anticipated  them  by  a  generation.  Well 
did  Isaiah  say  that  "the  wisdom  of  their  wise  men 
shall  perish,  and  the  understanding  of  their  prudent 
men  shall  be  hid." 

When  the  cataclysm  came  and  war  was  poured 
out  upon  all  the  earth,  when  the  Jews  began  to  knock 
at  the  gates  of  Jerusalem  and  the  proclamation  was 
about  to  go  forth  from  Great  Britain,  and  America, 
and  France,  that  Palestine  should  be  reserved  for  a 
national  home  of  the  Jews,  their  seers  began  to  see. 
How  about  the  boy  who  saw  it  in  futurity? 

The  mail  to-day  brought  me  a  most  remarkable 
clipping  from  a  Des  Moines  newspaper.  There  has 
been  visiting  in  the  United  States,  Bishop  Nicholai, 
of  Serbia,  who  is  said  to  be  described  by  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury  as  the  greatest  living  church 
man  in  the  world.  Last  Monday  he  lectured  in  Des 
Moines.  Here  is  the  report  of  his  lecture  taken  from 
the  Des  Moines  Evening  Tribune  for  March  14, 
1921: 

"You  have  heard  the  history  of  the  end  of  Baby- 
lon? of  the  old  Greece?  of  Pompeii  and  ancient 
Rome?  Well,  you  can  read  the  signs  of  a  dying 


The  Restoration  443 

empire  on  the  bodies  of  the  European  state  to-day. 
...  It  is  curious,  to-day,  to  note  how  much  talk 
there  is  of  the  world's  end  in  every  European 
country.  The  press  is  full  of  it  (shamefacedly,  but 
irresistibly) ,  as  are  the  mouths  of  men.  Religionists 
pray  for  Christ  to  come  again.  From  the  common 
people  you  will  receive  the  direct,  open  assurance 
that  Christ  will  come  again,  ere  long.  It  is  most 
curious.  In  one  section,  an  interesting  state  of  mind 
exists.  Conviction  that  the  Son  of  Man  will  soon 
reappear  on  earth  is  absolute.  They  say  he  is  now 
'in  the  clouds/  and  speak  of  him  as  the  'aerial 
Christ.'  " 

A  SCRIPTURAL  FORM  OF  DOCTRINE 

The  late  Doctor  Talmage  said,  "I  wish  we  could 
have  a  creed  made  up  solely  of  scriptural  texts." 
When  Joseph  Smith  wanted  to  present  his  theology 
to  the  world,  he  went  directly  to  the  6th  chapter  of 
Hebrews  where  Paul  names  the  six  fundamental 
principles  of  the  gospel.  Jesus  Christ  said  that  he 
sent  Paul  to  be  an  especial  vessel  to  bear  his  name 
to  the  Gentiles.  So  you  will  find  in  our  epitome  of 
faith,  this  statement:  "All  men  may  be  saved  by 
obedience  to  the  laws  and  ordinances  of  the  gospel. 
We  believe  that  these  laws  and  ordinances  are :  faith 
in  God  and  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ;  repentance; 
baptism  by  immersion  for  the  remission  of  sins ;  lay- 
ing on  of  hands  for  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost  .  .  . 
resurrection  of  the  body  .  .  .  eternal  judgment." 
The  six  principles  named  by  Paul. 


444  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

It  seems  a  little  strange  to  me  that  among  all  the 
church  builders  no  one  thought  to  adopt  this  partic- 
ular statement  of  faith  which  is  easily  defensible  by 
the  Scriptures  and  so  absolutely  adequate  to  all  hu- 
man needs,  because  it  takes  a  man  at  the  very  mo- 
ment when  faith  comes  into  the  heart  at  his  mother's 
knee  or  under  the  sound  of  the  preacher's  voice,  on 
through  the  ashes  of  repentance  and  the  waters  of 
baptism  and  regeneration  and  the  spiritual  birth,  to 
the  resurrection  and  eternal  judgment,  and  so  into 
the  presence  of  God  himself. 

THE   SCRIPTURAL   ORGANIZATION 

The  next  great  concept  was  that  of  a  scriptural 
form  of  organization.  We  are  told  in  1  Corinthians 
12 :  28  that  "God  hath  set  some  in  the  church,  first 
apostles,  secondarily  prophets,  thirdly  teachers." 

If  God  set  apostles  and  prophets  in  the  church,  who 
had  the  right  to  take  them  out?  And  we  are  told  in 
Ephesians  4 :  11-13,  that  Christ  "gave  some,  apostles ; 
and  some,  prophets;  and  some,  evangelists;  and 
some,  pastors  and  teachers ;  for  the  perfecting  of  the 
saints,  for  the  work  of  the  ministry,  for  the  edifying 
of  the  body  of  Christ ;  till  we  all  come  in  the  unity  of 
the  faith." 

We  haven't  yet  become  perfect  or  reached  unity, 
and  the  work  of  the  ministry  is  not  done. 

Well,  some  one  may  say,  "Why,  sure,  we  have 
apostles  and  prophets  in  our  church." 

"Where  are  they?" 

"Why,  Paul  and  John  and  Isaiah  and  Jeremiah. 


The  Restoration  445 

We  have  them;  they  are  right  here  in  the  Bible." 
'But  as  Danny  Williams  says,  "They  are  dead." 
Why  do  you  draw  a  line  between  apostles  and  pas- 
tors? God  set  both  in  the  church.  You  are  satisfied 
with  dead  apostles,  but  you  want  live  pastors.  You 
are  not  satisfied  with  a  dead  pastor.  You  don't  have 
to  take  up  a  collection  for  Peter  and  John;  yet  you 
say  that  you  want  a  live  pastor."  Well,  we  are  just 
like  you,  only  more  so.  We  want  live  apostles.  Some- 
where this  young  man  got  the  great  religious  concept 
of  a  church  organized  on  the  divine  pattern,  with  all 
the  officers  of  the  New  Testament  church — and  be- 
hold, it  was  accomplished. 

A    RETURN    OF    THE    GIFTS    AND    BLESSINGS 

The  next  great  concept  was  that  of  the  return  of 
the  gospel  gifts  and  blessings  such  as  you  will  find 
in  Mark  16:  16-18  and  1  Corinthians  12:  7-11;  the 
gift  of  wisdom,  of  faith,  of  prophecy,  of  speaking  in 
tongues,  of  miracles,  of  healing  of  the  sick,  and  so  on. 
I  suppose  that  if  I  were  to  call  upon  witnesses  here 
in  this  audience,  seventy-five  per  cent  of  the  audience 
would  testify  that  they  had  either  seen  or  experi- 
enced personally  to  their  satisfaction  and  conviction 
some  of  these  great  spiritual  blessings  that  the  apos- 
tles enjoyed  of  old. 

A  RESTORED  PRIESTHOOD 

The  next  concept  we  notice  was  that  of  a  re- 
stored priesthood.  Absolutely  without  doubt  Jesus 
had  an  ordained  priesthood,  and  a  man  not  ordained 


446  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

had  no  right  to  go  out  and  represent  him.  This  went 
on  until  the  apostasy  set  in.  But  if  I  try  to  trace  my 
priesthood  back  to-day  and  say  that  I  was  ordained 
by  so-and-so  and  trace  it  back  and  back  and  back, 
shall  I  be  satisfied  if  it  ends  with  the  Church  of  Rome 
and  the  Vatican?  Certainly  not.  Others  may  if 
they  wish. 

Jesus  says,  "Ye  have  not  chosen  me,  but  I  have 
chosen  you  and  ordained  you." — John  15 :  16.  We 
stand  for  a  restored  priesthood.  A  man  cannot  get 
a  seat  in  the  Senate  by  reading  the  Constitution  of 
the  United  States,  and  he  cannot  get  the  right  to  ad- 
minister in  gospel  ordinances  by  reading  the  Bible. 
He  must  be  called  and  must  be  ordained.  Priest- 
hood was  restored.  We  do  not  trace  our  authority 
back  to  Rome. 

THE    BOOK    OF    MORMON 

Another  religious  concept  was  that  of  the  Book  of 
Mormon,  strangely  misunderstood.  Ingersoll  said 
on  one  occasion  that  the  Christian  God  was  ignorant 
of  the  existence  of  America  until  Columbus  told  him 
of  it.  I  wonder  if  that  was  true.  One  half  of  the 
world  he  blessed,  centuries  on  end,  with  revelations 
and  with  blessings  and  with  his  Bible  and  with  his 
law.  What  was  he  doing  for  the  other  half? 

Archaeology  shows  us  that  civilization  was  ex- 
tremely ancient  in  both  North  and  South  America. 
Was  God  one  sided?  Could  he  see  only  half  the 
earth?  Or  was  he  partial?  Did  Ingersoll  tell  the 
truth?  The  Book  of  Mormon  comes  and  gives  us  the 


The  Restoration  447 

history  of  the  people  who  lived  on  the  American  Con- 
tinent. It  makes  another  witness,  and  it  shows  that 
God  was  not  partial,  but  that  he  was  blessing  the 
people  here  even  as  he  did  in  the  Old  World. 

ZIONIC   IDEALS 

Last  of  all  we  come  to  what  we  might  term,  Our 
Zionic  Ideals — the  eighth  and  last  of  the  ideals  or  re- 
ligious concepts  we  have  noted — the  idea  of  a  Zion. 
Jesus  Christ  said  that  prior  to  his  coming  there 
should  be  war  and  pestilence  and  famines  poured  out 
on  all  the  earth ;  and  he  told  his  disciples,  as  you  will 
find  in  Luke  21 :  36,  that  they  should  pray  that  when 
that  time  came,  they  might  "escape"  from  those 
things.  Escape  where?  The  answer  is,  In  Zion,  the 
city  of  refuge. 

But  there  is  something  that  is  infinitely  more  in- 
teresting than  the  mere  idea  of  safety.  The  social 
theories  of  Jesus  Christ  have  never  been  worked  out 
in  any  community.  I  mean  any  modern  community. 
Individuals  have  shaped  their  lives  after  the  divine 
pattern  to  a  certain  extent;  but  there  is  not  a  com- 
munity anywhere  under  the  shining  sun,  and  has  not 
been  in  modern  history,  where  the  social  ideas  of 
Jesus  Christ  have  been  fully  worked  out.  Men  have 
emphasized  the  fatherhood  of  God,  but  they  cer- 
tainly have  not  emphasized  in  practice  the  brother- 
hood of  man. 

Jesus  Christ  calls  for  brotherhood ;  and  one  of  the 
ideals  that  this  church  had  from  the  very  beginning 
was  to  build  a  community  where  the  brotherhood  of 


448  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

man  would  prevail.  I  don't  suppose  the  world  would 
believe  it ;  but  that  was  the  secret  of  all  their  efforts 
in  gathering  at  Nauvoo,  and  Independence,  and  in 
Kirtland.  The  church  was  not  a  year  old  until  the 
Lord  told  them  to  begin  to  gather  and  to  try  to  work 
out  a  community  in  which  there  would  be  neither 
rich  nor  poor,  but  where  all  would  be  equal  and  all 
be  true  servants  of  God. 

The  aim  of  that  gathering  is  brotherhood.  The 
principles  involved  are  love  and  consecration  and 
stewardship  and  justice  and  equality  in  temporal 
things  as  well  as  in  spiritual  things.  The  results 
will  be  blessing  and  joy  and  power. 

I  am  glad  that  we  had  this  very  high  ideal.  Some 
people  think  that  idealists  are  crazy ;  that  they  can- 
not be  trusted.  When  you  find  a  sane  idealist,  you 
have  the  sanest  man  on  earth,  because  he  does  not 
stake  his  destiny  on  a  passing  moment,  but  he  looks 
to  the  eternal  future.  Jesus  Christ  was  an  idealist. 
For  his  ideals  he  went  without  a  home.  He  wore  one 
single  garment.  He  ate  the  wheat  out  of  the  field. 
For  his  ideals  he  suffered  stripes.  He  let  men  spit 
upon  him.  He  wore  the  thorny  crown.  He  hung 
upon  the  cross.  I  am  glad  that  we  have  an  ideal.  If 
the  world  tells  us  that  it  cannot  be  worked  out,  Jesus 
Christ  says  it  can.  He  died  for  it. 

Galileo  was  an  idealist  who  saw  the  lamp  in  the 
cathedral  swinging  to  and  fro,  as  you  see  yonder 
lamp  swinging,  and  he  had  a  picture  of  the  earth  re- 
volving on  its  axis.  He  stood  up  and  said,  "The  earth 


The  Restoration  449 

moves."  The  ecclesiastics  said,  "You  are  mistaken." 
And  they  made  him  recant,  but  when  he  got  up  from 
his  knees,  he  said  under  his  breath,  "It  does  move," 
and  to-day  everyone  knows  that  he  was  right. 

Columbus  was  an  idealist  who  dreamed  of  a  new 
earth  and  struck  out  over  uncharted  waters  to  dis- 
cover America. 

John  Brown  was  an  idealist,  a  hair-brained  idealist 
who  dreamed  of  a  free  negro.  He  went  to  Harper's 
Ferry  and  died.  All  men  said,  What  folly !  But  in 
a  few  years  there  were  thousands  and  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  men  marching  and  they  were  singing, 
"John  Brown's  body  lies  a-moldering  in  the  grave, 
but  his  soul  goes  marching  on." 

'The  fathers  of  this  country  were  idealists  who 
founded  a  republic  on  the  principles  of  democracy 
that  had  never  been  tried  out,  and  staked  their  all  on 
the  ideal  of  political,  religious,  and  intellectual  lib- 
erty. 

We  are  idealists  who  have  a  vision  of  Zion.  Young 
people,  you  have  something  to  live  for.  You  have 
something  to  work  for.  You  have  termed  yourselves 
Zion  Builders.  You  have  an  ideal  that  is  worthy  of 
the  ambition  of  any  true  man  or  woman.  It  calls 
first  for  personal,  individual  regeneration  and  for 
individual  preparation;  and  in  the  last  analysis  it 
calls  for  group  cooperation  and  righteousness  and  the 
building  up  a  society  that  need  not  be  ashamed  when 
Jesus  Christ  comes. 
15 


450 ,  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

WHENCE   GAME   THESE    CONCEPTS 

I  wonder  where  an  ignorant  boy  like  Joseph  Smith 
got  these  great  religious  concepts.  How  do  you  an- 
swer that  question?  The  world  tries  to  answer  by 
burying  him  under  slander  so  deep  that  they  hope  he 
can  never  emerge.  They  may  bury  him ;  but  the  great 
religious  concepts  that  he  taught  rise  up  like  giants 
amid  the  ruins  of  old  creeds  and  outgrown  theologies 
that  have  fallen  by  the  way. 

We  answer  that  question  by  saying  that  he  did  not 
get  these  concepts  from  his  own  wisdom,  but  that 
God  gave  them  to  him,  as  he  said,  "Behold  I  will  pro- 
ceed to  do  a  marvelous  work  among  this  people, 
even  a  marvelous  work  and  a  wonder;  for  the  wis- 
dom of  their  wise  men  shall  perish,  and  the  under- 
standing of  their  prudent  men  shall  be  hid." 


THE   CENTRAL   FIGURE   OF 
CHRISTIANITY 

(A  Christmas  Day  Editorial.) 

THERE  is  one  figure  in  the  history  of  Christian- 
ity that  overshadows  all  others — the  founder 
and  central  figure,  Christ.  The  tongues  that 
traduced  him  have  long  been  dust.  Their  slanders 
fell  away  from  him  and  left  no  scar,  as  must  sooner 
or  later  be  the  case  with  every  good  man.  The  luster 
of  his  life  is  undimmed  by  time;  the  purity  of  his 
teachings  unrivaled  by  man.  There  is  not  found  now 
anywhere,  among  Jews  or  Gentiles,  among  infidels  or 
believers,  one  who  will  say  aught  against  his  personal 
character,  and  few  who  care  to  attack  his  teachings, 
when  they  are  stripped  of  the  traditions  of  men.  Of 
him  Ingersoll  said: 

"Let  me  say  here,  once  for  all,  that  for  the  man 
Christ  I  have  infinite  respect.  Let  me  say,  once  for 
all,  that  the  place  where  man  has  died  for  man  is 
holy  ground;  and  let  me  say,  once  for  all,  to  that 
great  and  serene  man  I  gladly  pay  the  homage  of  my 
admiration  and  my  tears." 

It  is  a  significant  fact  that  when  the  great  agnos- 
tic looked  over  the  ages  to  find  a  man  preeminently 
worthy  of  the  "homage  of  his  admiration  and  his 
tears,"  he  selected  Christ,  the  founder  of  Christian- 
ity, a  teacher  of  and  believer  in  the  Bible  that  Inger- 

451 


452  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

soil  made  it  his  work  to  fight,  though  perhaps  it  is 
true  that  his  bitterest  attacks  were  against  false  in- 
terpretations of  the  Bible. 

All  Ingersoll  knew  of  the  life  and  teaching  of 
Christ,  he  learned  from  the  New  Testament.  It  con- 
tained a  picture  of  one  man  sufficiently  reliable  and 
forceful  to  compel  his  homage,  his  admiration,  and 
his  tears. 

Is  it  not  a  sublime  thought  that  man  may  so  live 
that  the  enemy  will  be  silenced  and  the  skeptic  forced 
to  admire?  Christ  did  that  and  that  we  must  do, 
because  we  are  his  followers. 

To  enlist  in  such  an  undertaking  is  the  best  honor 
we  may  render  to  his  name  at  this  Christmas  time. 

The  life  of  Christ  was  a  distinct  victory  for  all 
that  is  good,  in  that  while  he  stood  for  peace  and  for 
equality  he  impressed  the  world  more  than  any  or 
all  of  the  men  who  have  exalted  themselves  by  war 
and  carnage.  Alexander,  Bonaparte,  Grant,  Wilhelm 
— none  of  these  changed  the  course  of  world  events 
or  controlled  the  lives  of  individuals  as  did  this  man 
of  peace.  Moreover,  their  active  influence,  limited  as 
it  was,  is  now  largely  ended,  while  his  widens  and  is 
destined  to  widen  until  all  kingdoms  become  his  king- 
dom, and  all  men  render  him  the  "homage  of  their 
admiration  and  their  tears." 


BACK  TO  JESUS  AND  HIS  PLANS 

SADLY  at  times  we  sing,  "Change  and  decay 
in  all  around  I  see/'  All  things  human  con- 
stantly change.  We  may  be  situated  ever  so 
happily,  yet  we  are  always  conscious  in  the  back  of 
our  minds  somewhere  that  presently  the  "evil  days" 
spoken  of  by  "the  preacher"  will  come,  and  old  age, 
disease,  or  death  change  our  estate.  Vainly  we  look 
back  to  the  happy  days  and  pleasant  scenes  of  the 
past.  Not  one  of  them  can  we  live  over  or  recon- 
struct; possibly  we  would  not  enjoy  the  experience 
if  we  could,  for  we,  too,  have  changed. 

We  have  said  that  all  things  human  change,  but 
this  must  be  modified.  Human  passions,  appetites, 
longings,  and  needs  never  change.  They  are  the 
same  to-day  that  they  were  when  Jesus  was  here. 
And  Jesus  himself  never  changes.  He  is  the  Lamb 
slain  from  before  the  foundation  of  the  world.  He  is 
the  "same  yesterday,  to-day,  and  forever." 

But  humanity  says,  "He  lived  so  long  ago.  Times 
have  changed.  His  teachings  do  not  meet  the  needs 
of  our  day." 

What  a  terrible  mistake !  His  gospel  is  the  "ever- 
lasting gospel,"  adapted  to  all  ages.  Men  cry,  Lo 
here!  and,  Lo  there!  And  advocate  this  philosophy, 
or  that  system,  or  the  other  party  or  association,  as 
the  solution  of  all  our  problems,  when  in  fact  the 

453 


454  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

name  of  Jesus  is  still  the  only  name  under  heaven 
given  among  men  by  which  we  must  be  saved.  His 
gospel  is  predicated  on  the  fact  that  "Ye  must  be 
born  again."  A  regenerated  society  can  only  be  com- 
posed of  regenerated  individuals.  That  gospel  offers 
the  only  means  of  regeneration  and  thus  meets  at 
once  the  supreme  need  of  the  individual  and  society 
— the  ever  present  and  age-old  need. 

Try  as  we  will  to  suppress  vice,  crime,  graft,  and 
immorality,  under  the  guise  of  this  or  that  commend- 
able "reform,"  we  discover  that  when  suppressed  in 
one  quarter  these  evils  appear  in  another  quarter,  or 
in  a  new  form.  It  would  seem  that  mere  ethical 
teaching  has  gone  about  as  far  as  it  can  go  in  reform- 
ing society.  "Back  to  Jesus  and  his  plan"  should  be 
the  slogan  of  all  who  really  have  the  good  of  human- 
ity at  heart. 

We  are  familiar  with  the  fact  that  communities 
and  nations  are  born,  grow,  mature,  decay,  and  die. 
Thus  went  Egypt,  Babylon,  Greece,  Rome,  and  all  the 
ancient  nations.  Their  fate  presages  the  fate  of  all 
our  dominant  modern  nations.  . 

We  say  that  this  is  a  part  of  human  mutation— 
that  nations  and  communities  must  live  and  die  like 
individuals ;  that  it  is  natural  for  them  to  do  so.  We 
forget  that  death  is  not  "natural."  It  is  the  result 
of  disobedience.  That  nation  or  community  that 
finally  adjusts  itself  to  the  perfect,  divine  plan  will 
live  forever.  That  is  why  Christ's  dominion  will  be 
from  "everlasting  to  everlasting." 


Back  to  Je&us  and  His  Plans  455 

Of  him  it  is  written :  "Of  the  increase  of  his  gov- 
ernment and  peace  there  shall  be  no  end,  upon  the 
throne  of  David,  and  upon  his  kingdom,  to  order  it, 
and  to  establish  it  with  judgment  and  with  justice 
from  henceforth  even  for  ever." 


OUR    STANDARD    OF    EXCELLENCE 

"Till  we  all  come  in  the  unity  of  the  faith,  and  of  the 
knowledge  of  the  Son  of  God,  unto  a  perfect  man,  unto  the 
measure  of  the  stature  of  the  fullness  of  Christ." — Ephe- 
sians  4: 13. 

IT  IS  necessary  to  have  standards  by  which  to 
measure  progress,  as  well  as  quantities  and  val- 
ues, in  the  spiritual  as  well  as  in  the  material 
world.  In  the  material  world  we  have  adopted  such 
standards  of  measurement  as  the  pound,  the  foot, 
and  the  dollar. 

Men  readily  admit  the  importance  of  these  stand- 
ards— especially  of  the  latter.  By  it  they  not  only 
measure  their  calico  and  silk,  their  coal  and  dia- 
monds, their  firewood  and  mahogany  furniture ;  but, 
too  often  themselves  as  well.  They  sell  themselves 
or  their  influence  or  their  vote  for  a  dollar,  or  for 
fifty  thousand  dollars,  according  to  their  position, 
and  consider  that  a  good  bargain  has  been  made. 

But  while  a  man  may  properly  use  the  dollar  with 
which  to  measure  his  hogs  or  his  hay,  he  makes  a 
terrible  mistake  when  he  uses  it  to  measure  himself. 
He  is  using  a  material  standard  by  which  to  measure 
things  of  the  soul.  No  man  should  set  a  monetary 
value  upon  his  honor. 

A    DOUBLE    STANDARD   IN    SPIRITUAL   THINGS    WRONG 

In  all  things  it  is  important  to  have  a  true  and  un- 
changing standard. 

456 


Our  Standard  of  Excellence  457 

The  law  of  Moses  said : 

"Thou  shalt  not  have  in  thine  house  divers  meas- 
ures, a  great  and  a  small.  But  thou  shalt  have  a  per- 
fect and  just  weight,  a  perfect  and  just  measure 
shalt  thou  have." — Deuteronomy  25 :  14,  15. 

This  language  referred  to  material  weights  and 
measures,  but  will  also  apply  to  spiritual  standards. 
There  are  many  homes,  professedly  Christian,  where 
there  are  two  standards — one  derived  from  Christ, 
which  governs  profession,  and  another  acquired 
from  the  world,  which  governs  practice.  "Thou 
shalt  not  have  in  thine  house  divers  measures." 

IMPORTANCE  OF  THE  MEASURE  INCREASES  WITH 
IMPORTANCE  OF  THINGS  MEASURED 

The  importance  of  the  standard  of  measurement 
increases  with  the  value  of  the  thing  measured. 
When  potatoes  sold  for  fifteen  cents  per  bushel  the 
farmers  did  not  give  particular  attention  to  the 
measure;  but  now  when  we  give  ten  or  twelve  times 
as  much  for  potatoes  the  grocer  weighs  them  very 
carefully.  If  there  are  one  or  two  medium  sized  po- 
tatoes in  the  measure  more  than  he  thinks  we  should 
have,  he  removes  them  and  sells  them  to  some  other 
poor  fellow  who  is  trying  to  meet  Twentieth  Century 
prices  with  a  Nineteenth  Century  income. 

When  land  sold  for  five  dollars  an  acre,  or  could  be 
homesteaded,  or  a  rifle  might  be  traded  to  the  Indians 
for  as  much  territory  as  one  could  ride  around  in  a 
day,  men  were  not  very  careful  to  measure  land  ex- 
actly. But  now,  when  land  sells  in  Los  Angeles  or  in 


458  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

New  York  City  for  $865.55  per  square  foot,  as  it  did 
recently  at  Thirty-fourth  Street  and  Broadway,  New 
York  City,  it  must  be  measured  with  a  rule  that  is 
scientifically  exact.  The  seller  would  not  accept  a 
standard  that  has  thirteen  inches  to  the  foot.  The 
buyer  will  not  tolerate  a  measure  that  is  even  a 
quarter  of  an  inch  short.  The  importance  of  the 
standard  increases  with  the  importance  of  the  thing 
measured. 

When,  therefore,  we  consider  things  of  eternal  im- 
port, the  growth  and  development  of  the  human  soul, 
questions  of  doctrine  and  morals,  right  and  wrong, 
the  relationship  of  man  to  God  and  to  his  fellow  man, 
we  must  concede  that  it  is  of  the  greatest  importance 
to  have  standards  that  are  exactly  correct.  We  must 
not  have  a  double  standard.  But  a  just  and  a  true 
standard  we  must  have. 

FALSE  STANDARDS  KILL  THE  POOR 

It  is  said  that  some  months  ago  United  States 
Government  inspectors  threw  into  the  harbor  at  New 
York  in  a  single  day  twenty  tons  of  false  weights 
and  measures  that  had  been  taken  from  the  shop- 
keepers of  New  York  City.  Some  time  ago  Pro- 
fessor G.  W.  Stewart,  who  was  state  superintendent 
of  weights  and  measures  in  Iowa,  read  a  paper  be- 
fore the  Baconian  Club  of  Iowa  City,  in  which  he 
set  forth  conditions  in  five  leading  Iowa  cities,  as  re- 
vealed by  Government  inspection.  In  one  of  these 
cities  33  per  cent  of  the  scales  tested  were  incorrect, 
and  the  weights  false.  In  another  64  per  cent  were 


Our  Standard  of  Excellence  459 

wrong.  The  other  cities  ranged  between  these  two. 
The  amounts  that  customers  were  cheated  varied 
from  six  to  twenty-eight  cents  on  the  dollar.  These 
findings  are  perhaps  typical  of  the  country  at  large 
and  the  world  over,  excepting  that  conditions  are 
worse  in  larger  cities ;  and  the  very  poor  who  buy 
in  minute  quantities  suffer  most  from  this  kind  of 
fraud. 

There  is  more  than  dishonesty  in  this,  in  its  effect 
upon  the  poor.  Prices  are  so  extremely  high  and 
their  income  so  very  low  that  they  are  already  below 
the  standard  of  comfortable  living,  even  when  they 
get  all  that  they  pay  for.  And  when  they  are  cheated 
a  little  on  every  pound  of  meat,  on  every  loaf  of 
bread,  on  every  sack  of  coal,  on  every  pint  of  milk,  it 
is  not  their  money  alone,  but  their  life  that  is  taken. 
Cruelty  and  murder  are  added  to  dishonesty.  False 
standards  kill  the  poor. 

It  is  equally  true  that  the  world  is  full  of  false 
standards  in  spiritual  things.  The  law  of  God  says 
that  as  a  man  sows  so  also  shall  he  reap.  But  the 
world  has  its  own  false  standard,  widely  accepted, 
which  says  that  young  men,  and  old  ones,  too,  if  we 
must  admit  it,  must  sow  their  wild  oats,  and  that 
medical  science  will  find  a  way  to  cheat  God  so  that 
they  will  not  need  to  reap  the  harvest. 

This  is  only  one  among  many  false  standards.  It 
has  ruined  thousands  of  young  men  and  women, 
blighted  thousands  of  homes,  and  brought  needless 
suffering  on  many  innocent  people.  False  spiritual 


460  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

standards  kill  the  people.  They  destroy  men  physi- 
cally and  take  from  them  eternal  life. 

Jesus  was  given  as  the  perfect  standard  by  which 
a  man  should  measure  himself  and  his  progress  to- 
wards perfection;  by  which  he  should  govern  his 
beliefs  and  his  morals. 

This  is  a  wonderful  age — the  age  of  the  automobile, 
the  flying  machine,  and  wireless  telegraphy.  Our 
fathers  were  content  with  the  ox  cart.  We  put  the 
value  and  speed  and  power  of  a  hundred  ox  carts  into 
one  automobile. 

This  is  a  wonderful  age,  but  with  all  its  tumul- 
tuous striving,  with  all  its  mentality,  and  invention, 
and  achievement,  and  study,  and  philosophy,  it  has 
not  produced  and  cannot  produce  a  character  that 
will  take  the  place  of  Jesus  as  the  standard  of  human 
excellence,  or  a  system  that  will  take  the  place  of 
his  gospel  as  the  gauge  of  human  belief  and  morals. 

This  age  is  great  in  material  things.  It  is  not 
great  in  spiritual  things.  It  ignores  the  source  of  its 
own  greatness,  the  inspiration  of  God  that  always 
quickens  every  generation  to  which  is  given  the  op- 
portunity to  hear  the  gospel  message.  A  persistent 
refusal  to  accept  God  will  be  followed  by  a  with- 
drawal of  light  and  a  lapse  into  darkness  and  decay. 

"HEAR  YE  HIM" 

It  is  our  highest  duty  to  recognize  Jesus  as  our 
standard  and  to  preach  him  to  the  world.  We  need 
no  false  worldly  standards  by  which  to  measure  our 
doctrines  or  ourselves.  No  greater  message  can  be 


Our  Standard  of  Excellence  461 

sounded  than  the  message  that  was  given  to  Joseph 
Smith  during  his  first  vision  that  April  morning  over 
ninety  years  ago  :  "This  is  my  beloved  Son.  Hear  ye 


The  religious  world  had  been  saying:  "This  is 
Pastor  Brown,  learned  in  many  languages;  hear  ye 
him,"  Or,  "This  is  Parson  Jones,  D.  D.;  hear  ye 
him."  Or,  "This  is  Reverend  Johnson  ;  hear  ye  him." 
But  here  comes  a  man  who  sounded  the  message: 
"This  is  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God  ;  hear  ye  him." 
That  was  our  message,  is  our  message,  and  should 
ever  continue  to  be  our  message.  Our  doctrines 
should  accord  with  his  doctrines  as  set  forth  in  his 
word.  Our  lives  should  conform  to  his  life  as  it  was 
lived  among  men.  In  all  things  we  should  measure 
ourselves  by  him,  growing  up  into  his  likeness,  until 
we  reach  the  perfect  stature  of  manhood  in  Christ 
Jesus. 

In  too  many  churches  one  standard,  in  the  form  of 
the  Bible,  rests  upon  the  pulpit  desk,  and  behind  the 
desk  quite  another  is  announced  by  the  preacher. 
"Thou  shalt  not  have  in  thine  house  diverse  meas- 
ures." 

PUTTING   OTHERS   IN   THE   PLACE   OF   JESUS 

It  is  a  mistake  for  us  to  put  anyone  else  in  the  place 
of  Jesus.  We  do  this  sometimes  when  we  wish  to  do 
right.  We  select  some  good  man  in  whom  we  have 
confidence,  and  think  that  if  we  could  only  be  like 
him  we  would  be  satisfied.  We  make  him  our  model 
in  all  things.  We  do  as  he  does,  vote  as  he  votes,  and 


462  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

think  as  he  thinks.  But  there  comes  a  time  when 
the  judgment  of  our  hero  leads  him  into  error — and 
we  follow  him.  Or,  being  human,  he  is  tempted  and 
falls.  Then  our  faith  in  God  and  in  humanity  and  in 
the  church  is  shaken.  Our  standard  is  gone.  This 
could  not  have  happened  had  we  made  Jesus  our 
standard.  He  never  changes  and  never  errs.  Our 
faith  can  abide  in  him,  no  matter  how  many  men  go 
astray. 

Again,  we  make  a  similar  mistake  when  we  wish 
to  do  wrong.  In  this  case  we  select  some  bad  man, 
and  think  if  we  are  no  worse  than  he  we  will  be  all 
right.  We  argue,  perhaps,  that  he  is  a  member  of 
the  church,  and  if  he  does  certain  things  that  are 
wrong  we  can  do  likewise.  ,  But  God  has  never  said 
that  we  shall  be  rewarded  because  we  are  no  worse 
than  some  one  else  who  is  bad.  We  should  resolve  to 
do  our  duty  whether  others  do  theirs  or  not.  Jesus 
did  his  duty,  that  is  enough.  Like  him,  we  must  do 
ours,  if  we  are  to  follow  him. 

In  short,  we  should  heed  the  admonition  to  grow 
towards  perfection  in  him,  becoming  like  him  in  all 
things,  until  we  acquire  the  perfect  stature  of  man- 
hood in  Christ  Jesus,  the  highest  manhood  the  ages 
can  produce.  He  is  the  standard  by  which  we  should 
measure  those  most  important  things,  belief,  conduct, 
character.  In  him  we  have  a  standard  of  measure- 
ment that  is  scientifically  and  scripturally  exact. 


MAN'S    FREE    AGENCY 

THE  RIGHT  OF  SELF-DETERMINATION 

(Sermon  in  the  series  for  young  people  at  the  Stone 
Church,  Independence,  Missouri,  Sunday,  evening,  December 
11,  1921.) 

I  WISH  to  speak  to-night  on  self-determination. 
Not  the  self-determination  of  nations  pro- 
pounded by  Woodrow  Wilson  at  Versailles;  but 
the  self-determination  of  individual  men  propounded 
by  Nephi  : 

"Wherefore,  the  Lord  God  gave  unto  man,  that  he 
should  act  for  himself." — 2  Nephi  1 :  99. 

This  Book  of  Mormon  text  contains  a  very  explicit 
and  concise  statement  of  the  doctrine  of  free 
agency.  The  right  of  self-determination  is  the  thing 
that  characterizes  you  as  men  and  women.  Inani- 
mate objects  move  as  they  are  compelled  to  move 
by  external  forces.  The  animals  have  no  knowledge 
of  good  or  evil,  so  are  not  called  upon  to  choose  and 
cannot  exercise  free  agency  in  a  moral  sense.  But 
to  you  alone  of  all  creatures  on  earth  God  says, 
"Choose  ye." 

GOOD   AND  EVIL;   THE  LAW   OF  OPPOSITES 

Good  and  evil  as  opposites  are  recognized  by  most 
human  philosophies  and  by  most  religions.  They 
have  been  made  the  subject  of  endless  speculation. 
Man's  curiosity  concerning  them  responded  to  the 

463 


464  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

Devil's  bait  in  Eden,  when  he  said :  "Ye  shall  be  as 
gods,  knowing  good  and  evil." 

I  have  said  that  most  religions  recognize  good 
and  evil;  however,  Christian  Science  denies  the 
reality  and  existence  of  evil.  I  will  read: 

"There  in  reality  is  no  evil." — Retrospection  and 
Introspection. 

"Evil  is  unreal  because  it  is  a  lie." — Science  and 
Health,  p.  527,  edition  of  1907. 

Evil,  then,  is  represented  as  unreal,  a  monstrous 
lie  that  has  been  all  but  universal.  But,  let  me  ask, 
What  is  a  monstrous  lie  if  not  evil  ?  So,  in  the  same 
breath  in  which  evil  is  denied,  it  is  affirmed.  Per- 
haps that  is  comprehensible  to  the  incomprehensible 
logic  of  Christian  Science,  which  constantly  affirms 
all  that  reason  denies  and  denies  all  that  reason  af- 
firms. 

It  is  worth  while  to  remember  that  the  Lord  is 
reported  to  have  said :  "The  man  has  become  as  one 
of  us,  to  know  good  and  evil." — Genesis  3 :  22.  Why 
deny  that  which  God  recognizes? 

Evil  is  self-evident.  To  illustrate:  What  man 
could  look  upon  the  dead  body  of  a  girl  murdered 
and  ravished  by  some  inhuman  brute,  and  then  go 
his  way  denying  the  reality  and  existence  of  evil? 

It  occurs  to  me  that  primitive  peoples  quite  with- 
out revelation  would  come  to  perceive  good  and  evil. 
Pain  would  be  evil;  comfort  good.  Famine  would 
be  evil;  plenty  would  be  good.  So  they  might  feel 
their  way  to  moral  issues  and  conclude  finally  that 
it  is  bad  to  kill,  to  steal,  to  lie. 


Man's  Free  Agency  465 

The  lines  of  reason  might  be  crude  at  first,  but 
would  lead  up  to  Socrates,  who  conceded  with  the 
Sophists  that  pleasure  is  the  chief  end  and  aim  of 
life,  but  went  far  beyond  them  to  affirm  that  true 
pleasure  is  found  only  in  rectitude,  virtue,  and  serv- 
ice; or  to  Roosevelt,  who  talked  about  the  twilight 
zone  of  morals,  affirming  that  it  is  easy  to  dis- 
tinguish black  on  the  one  hand  or  white  on  the  other, 
but  hard  to  determine  whether  some  shades  of  gray 
have  in  them  more  of  black  or  of  white. 

The  idea  of  good  and  evil  runs  all  through  the 
Scriptures.  The  Book  of  Mormon  has  one  very  in- 
teresting chapter  on  the  law  of  opposites.  I  will 
quote  some  very  brief  extracts : 

"For  it  must  needs  be,  that  there  is  opposition  in 
all  things.  If  not  so  ...  righteousness  could  not  be 
brought  to  pass;  neither  wickedness;  neither  holi- 
ness nor  misery ;  neither  good  nor  bad.  .  .  .  And  if  ye 
shall  say  there  is  no  sin,  ye  shall  also  say  there  is  no 
righteousness.  .  .  .  Even  the  forbidden  fruit  is  oppo- 
site to  the  tree  of  life;  the  one  being  sweet  and  the 
other  bitter."— 2  Nephi  1. 

Thus  the  idea  runs  through  the  philosophy  of  the 
chapter.  Bitter  is  opposed  to  sweet;  death  to  life; 
evil  to  good ;  sin  to  righteousness. 

Sir  Oliver  Lodge,  the  British  scientist,  has  a 
chapter  in  his  book,  The  Substance  of  Faith,  many 
portions  of  which  might  have  been  taken  bodily  from 
the  Book  of  Mormon,  so  far  as  sentiment  is  con- 
cerned. Is  it  not  strange  that  an  unlettered  boy 
like  Joseph  Smith,  who  is  supposed  by  some  to  have 


466  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

concocted  the  Book  of  Mormon,  should  have  pre- 
sented scientific  and  philosophic  ideas  that  nearly 
one  hundred  years  later  should  be  affirmed  by  one 
of  the  greatest  of  modern  scientists?  On  the  law 
of  opposites  or  contrasts,  Lodge  writes : 

"Some  idea  of  the  necessity  for  evil  can  be  con- 
veyed as  follows :  Contrast  is  an  inevitable  attribute 
of  reality.  Sickness  is  the  negative  and  opposite  of 
health.  .  .  .  There  is  no  sickness  in  inorganic  nature ; 
yet,  even  there,  contrast  is  the  essence  of  existence, 
Everything  that  is  must  be  surrounded  by  regions 
where  it  is  not.  .  .  .  Goodness  would  have  no  mean- 
ing if  badness  were  impossible  or  nonexistent." — 
The  Substance  of  Faith,  p.  53. 

"The  still  higher  attribute  of  conscious  striving 
after  holiness,  which  must  be  the  prerogative  of 
free  agents  capable  of  virtue  or  purposed  good,  .  .  . 
involves  the  possibility  that  beings  so  endowed  may 
fall  from  their  high  level  .  .  .  and  suffer  the  penalty 
called  sin."— Ibid.,  p.  52. 

"Every  rise  involves  the  possibility  of  fall." — 
Ibid.,  p.  51. 

Here  we  have  the  definite  recognition  of  the  law 
of  opposites,  including  good  and  evil;  the  power  to 
choose  as  free  agents ;  and  the  accompanying  possi- 
bility of  making  a  wrong  choice  with  the  resultant 
consequences. 

Every  uphill  road  is  of  necessity  a  downhill  road 
to  those  who  wish  to  go  that  way.  Elder  M.  T. 
Short,  in  one  of  his  old-time  sermons,  declared  that 
there  are  three  things  God  cannot  do:  He  cannot 


Man's  Free  Agency  467 

make  a  three-year-old  colt  in  a  minute;  he  cannot 
make  a  sheet  of  paper  so  thin  that  it  will  not  have 
two  sides ;  and  he  cannot  cut  a  stick  of  wood  so  short 
that  it  will  not  have  two  ends. 

Without  blasphemy  we  may  say  that  in  the  very 
nature  of  things  the  Lord  could  not  cause  man  to 
stand  erect  without  there  being  the  possibility  that 
he  might  fall.  He  could  not  create  an  uphill  road 
that  would  not  be  a  downhill  road  to  those  who 
chose  to  take  it — allowing  always  free  agency.  That 
thought  may  clear  away  some  perplexity  concerning 
divine  responsibility  for  evil. 

We  recognize  then  the  existence  of  good  and  evil. 
God  is  the  head  and  front  of  all  good  forces  and 
agencies.  All  that  invites  and  entices  to  do  good  is 
of  him,  the  Book  of  Mormon  affirms.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  Devil  is  the  head  and  front  of  all  evil 
forces  and  agencies.  One  works  to  save  man,  the 
other  to  destroy  him.  We  are  left  free  to  make  our 
choice  as  to  which  shall  finally  predominate  in  our 
lives. 

We  sometimes  wonder  why  God  does  not  exercise 
his  power  to  destroy  evil  and  arbitrarily  compel 
men  to  do  good  and  be  saved.  As  some  crudely  say, 
Why  doesn't  God  kill  the  Devil?  Suppose  he  should 
go  about  it  in  that  way  and  finally  compel  all  men  to 
come  in,  what  would  he  have?  A  lot  of  mechanical 
toys.  Mechanical  toys  may  be  interesting  to  chil- 
dren; but  the  Creator  started  out  to  develop  men. 
To  do  that  it  was  necessary  to  respect  their  free 
agency.  That  is  what  makes  the  process  of  redemp- 


468  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

tion  so  long  and  distressing.  But  it  is  the  only  way. 
The  Lord  chose  that  w,ay  deliberately,  knowing  the 
delay  and  the  danger  of  failure  in  individual  cases. 
And  finally  at  the  end  when  it  is  said,  "He  that  is 
filthy,  let  him  be  filthy  still,"  it  will  be  because  that 
man,  after  good  and  evil  have  been  fully  explained 
to  his  comprehension,  wills  to  be  filthy  still. 

THE   FUNDAMENTAL   DIFFERENCE    IN    THE    APPROACH 
OF  GOD  AND  THE  DEVIL 

What  is  the  fundamental  difference  between  the 
approach  of  God  and  the  Devil.  I  believe  that  it  is 
in  their  attitude  towards  the  human  will.  The  Devil 
tries  to  subvert,  weaken,  and  finally  destroy  man's 
will  power.  The  Lord  recognizes  the  sanctity  of 
human  will,  and  seeks  to  strengthen  and  develop  it 
in  all  good  ways. 

In  his  book,  the  Personality  of  God,  Snowden  has 
a  very  interesting  chapter  on  the  "Personality  of 
man."  I  will  read  a  short  extract : 

"Personality  is  the  distinctive  state  of  a  person; 
and  a  person  is  an  individual  being  endowed  with 
consciousness  consisting  of  perceptive  and  reflective 
thought,  sensibility,  and  responsible  will.  .  .  .  We 
think,  we  feel,  we  will;  we  do  these  three  things,  and 
we  never  can  do  more  or  less." — Page  9. 

With  thought  we  perceive  and  reflect  upon  things. 
Feelings  of  one  sort  or  another  are  aroused  and 
prompt  to  action — we  are  told  that  feeling  is  always 
the  dynamic  of  action.  But  then  enters  the  third 


Man's  Free  Agency  469 

one  of  the  trinity,  will,  and  determines  what  the  act 
shall  be. 

So  Snowden  adds :  "The  will  is  thus  the  spinal 
column  and  unifying  power  of  personality,  the 
throne  of  this  kingdom,  the  crown  and  captain  of 
self."— Ibid.,  p.  11. 

The  will,  then,  is  the  pivot  of  free  agency.  It  is 
the  backbone  of  human  personality — and  that  is  the 
thing  that  evil  in  all  forms  seeks  to  destroy. 

The  Devil  puts  a  cord  around  a  man's  neck  to 
lead  him  about:  "Yea,  and  he  leadeth  them  by  the 
neck  with  a  flaxen  cord,  until  he  bindeth  them  with 
strong  cords  forever." — 2  Nephi  11:  94. 

That  is  a  concise  picture  of  the  culmination 
and  climax  of  a  life  of  sin,  beginning  pleasantly  with 
a  flaxen  cord  about  the  neck,  the  Devil's  leading 
string,  and  ending  in  moral  slavery. 

But  God  proceeds  differently:  He  puts  truth  into 
the  heart :  "Ye  shall  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth 
shall  make  you  free.  ...  If  the  Son  therefore  shall 
make  you  free,  ye  shall  be  free  indeed." — John 
8:32,  36. 

That  is  a  very  concise  picture  of  the  culmination 
and  climax  of  a  life  of  righteousness,  beginning  with 
the  perception  of  truth,  and  leading  up  to  perfect 
freedom. 

THE    CORD    ABOUT    THE    NECK 

To  make  my  points  clear  I  may  use  some  illustra- 
tions that  you  have  heard  me  use  in  other  sermons. 
The  first  is  this :  A  man  riding  on  a  street  car  in  the 
days  before  prohibition  chanced  to  notice  an  adver- 


470  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

tisement  in  the  roof  of  the  car :  "Pure  rye  whisky 
strengthens  the  body,  brightens  the  intellect,  and 
invigorates  the  soul  of  man." 

Next  his  eye  beheld,  seated  directly  under  the  ad- 
vertisement, a  red-nosed,  blear-eyed,  slobbering 
drunkard,  giving  the  lie  in  every  particular  to  the 
advertisement.  There  is  an  old  proverb  which  says, 
"Truth  is  at  the  bottom  of  the  well."  This  inebriate 
had  been  to  the  bottom  of  the  well.  He  knew.  For 
years,  no  doubt,  the  Devil  led  him  around  with  a 
flaxen  cord.  He  boasted,  "I  can  drink  or  I  can  let  it 
alone."  The  man  who  says  that  never  lets  it  alone. 
Too  late  he  awoke  to  find  himself  bound  with  strong 
cords.  His  will  was  gone.  The  backbone  of  his 
personality  was  broken. 

A  young  man  entered  the  University  of  Iowa.  He 
seemed  to  desire  to  succeed,  but  almost  from  the 
first  he  failed  in  his  studies.  He  could  not  concen- 
trate. Finally  the  dean  called  the  lad  into  the  study 
and  quizzed  him.  The  young  man  broke  down  and 
sobbed,  "I  can't  quit  it.  I  can't  quit  it.  I  haven't 
the  will  power  to  quit." 

The  dean  inquired,  "What  is  it  you  cannot  quit?" 
And  the  boy  held  out  his  hands  to  show  the  cigaret- 
stained  fingers.  "I  learned  it  when  a  boy,"  he  went 
on.  "I  learned  it  at  the  livery  stables  and  about 
town.  I  thought  I  would  never  be  a  man  if  I  could 
not  smoke." 

That  was  the  flaxen  cord  around  his  neck.  But 
alas,  he  found  that  the  thing  he  thought  would  make 
him  a  man,  kept  him  from  being  a  man.  The  back- 


Man's  Free  Agency  471 

bone  of  his  personality  was  broken.  The  upshot  of 
the  matter  was  that  he  had  to  quit  college  and  re- 
turn home. 

At  one  time  I  was  called  to  visit  an  insane  hospi- 
tal in  California.  I  did  not  find  the  young  man  that 
I  sought  upon  the  lawn  with  other  unfortunates  who 
were  given  some  freedom.  I  found  him  in  the 
criminally  insane  ward,  where  the  windows  were 
barred  and  the  doors  locked.  I  was  admitted  to  his 
cell.  I  found  that  at  times  he  was  lucid,  though  of- 
ten he  wept  and  cursed  by  turns.  In  one  of  his  lucid 
moments  he  told  me  his  story. 

He  had  been  a  good,  industrious  young  man,  a 
member  of  the  church ;  but  in  an  evil  day,  or  rather 
night,  he  was  induced  to  visit  the  vice  district  of  a 
certain  community.  Friends  told  him,  "Come  on. 
Have  a  good  time.  No  one  need  know."  That  was 
the  flaxen  cord  that  he  permitted  about  his  neck. 
He  contracted  a  foul  disease.  The  physician  con- 
firmed his  story.  The  man  was  suffering  from 
paresis  as  a  result  of  that  disease  and  could  not  pos- 
sibly live  very  many  months. 

As  I  drove  away  through  the  sunny  fields  and 
orange  orchards  of  California,  the  sunlight  was 
blotted  out  by  the  shadow  of  that  house  of  detention 
and  by  the  thought  of  that  poor  unfortunate,  a  wit- 
ness to  the  truth  of  the  declaration:  "When  lust 
hath  conceived,  it  bringeth  forth  sin :  and  sin,  when 
it  is  finished,  bringeth  forth  death." — James  1 :  15. 

But  if  I  got  nothing  else  from  that  sad  interview 
I  did  get  a  new  exegesis  of  the  texts  which  say  the 


472 The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

wicked  shall  be  turned  into  the  prison  house.  What 
is  hell  if  it  is  not  an  asylum  for  the  criminally  in- 
sane of  all  times  where  they  may  be  confined  until 
they  are  recovered.  It  is  necessary  for  them  and  for 
the  general  good  of  humanity.  All  wicked  men  are 
more  or  less  criminally  insane;  they  are  befuddled 
in  thought,  debased  in  feeling,  broken  in  will;  and 
these  three  constituting  personality,  they  are  not 
normal  at  any  point. 

TRUTH   IN   THE   HEART 

Jesus  said  to  the  Jews,  "Ye  shall  know  the  truth, 
and  the  truth  shall  make  you  free."  He  works  to- 
wards freedom  by  the  way  of  truth — by  the  way  of 
truth  voluntarily  accepted  by  the  human  will. 

But  the  Jews  declared,  " We  were  never  in  bond- 
age to  any  man."  At  that  very  time  they  were  in 
intellectual  bondage  to  their  rabbis  and  traditions, 
in  political  bondage  to  Rome,  and  in  moral  bondage 
to  their  bad  habits. 

Many  who  now  boast  of  freedom  are  not  free.  I 
had  an  interview  at  one  time  with  a  young  man  who 
had  traveled  extensively.  Our  conversation  turned 
to  religious  topics.  Finally,  with  much  feeling,  he 
confessed :  "Mr.  Smith,  the  trouble  with  me  is  that 
I  know  the  things  that  I  should  do,  but  I  cannot  do 
them;  and  I  know  the  things  that  I  should  not  do, 
but  I  cannot  refrain  from  doing  them." 

I  looked  at  him  in  surprise  and  said:  "What  is 
the  matter  with  you,  a  perfect  athlete,  six  feet  tall, 
apparently  in  possession  of  all  your,  faculties,  in  the 


Man's  Free  Agency  473 

prime  of  young  manhood,  without  a  visible  shackle 
on  your  limbs,  yet  you  must  do  the  thing  that  you 
do  not  wish  to  do  and  cannot  do  that  which  you 
know  you  should  do  ?  You  are  a  slave.  You  are  not 
free." 

It  was  his  turn  to  look  at  me  in  surprise.  Yet  it 
was  the  truth.  He  dwelt  in  "the  land  of  the  free" 
under  the  shadow  of  the  starry  banner,  protected  by 
the  Constitution  for  which  thousands  died — yet  he 
was  not  free.  No  man  is  free  until  Jesus  sets  him 
free.  That  man  is  free  who  can  say,  There  is  no 
power  on  earth  or  within  me  that  can  prevent  me 
from  doing  that  which  my  conscience  approves,  or 
compel  me  to  do  that  against  which  my  better  nature 
revolts. 

Jesus  said,  "I  am  come  that  they  might  have  life, 
and  that  they  might  have  it  more  abundantly." — 
John  10:  10.  What  did  he  mean  by  that?  Did  he 
mean  that  we  should  be  taller,  broader,  more  full- 
blooded;  that  alone?  If  thought,  feeling,  and  will 
constitute  personality,  there  must  be  degrees  of  per- 
sonality. And  that  man  whose  thought  covers  the 
widest  range  most  correctly,  whose  feeling  is  deep- 
est and  best,  whose  will  is  ever  strong  to  determine 
a  course  consistent  with  truth  and  light,  has  most 
personality — he  lives  most — he  has  "life  more  abun- 
dantly." 

That  is  the  work  of  Jesus,  to  enlighten  the  intel- 
lect, to  purify  the  emotions,  to  redeem  the  will.  He 
respects  our  wills  and  appeals  to  them.  But  by  way 
of  contrast  it  is  said  that  in  that  wonderful  council 


474  The  Inside  of  the  Cup 

in  heaven  concerning  the  salvation  of  Man,  the  Devil 
volunteered  to  go,  providing  he  could  have  all  the 
glory.  He  promised  to  save  all  men.  Yes,  he  would 
march  them  into  heaven,  every  one,  whether  they 
wished  to  come  or  not.  He  is  the  Kaiser  Wilhelm  of 
the  Universe,  and  would  teach  all  men  to  "goose- 
step."  And  what  is  a  man  doing,  who  says,  "I 
would  like  to  stop  swearing  but  I  cannot ;  or,  I  would 
like  to  stop  drink,  or  drugs,  or  tobacco,  but  cannot— 
what  is  he  doing  if  not  "goose-stepping"  at  the  com- 
mand of  Lucifer. 

Jesus,  to  the  contrary,  presents  his  message  and 
then  waits — waits.  "Behold,  I  stand  at  the  door, 
and  knock :  if  any  man  hear  my  voice,  and  open  the 
door,  I  will  come  in  to  him,  and  will  sup  with  him, 
and  he  with  me." — Revelation  3 :  20. 

Christian  Science  repudiates  the  human  will,  and 
says :  "Will  power  is  not  science.  It  belongs  to  the 
senses  and  its  use  is  to  be  condemned." — Science  and 
Health,  p.  144,  edition  of  1907. 

But  Jesus  knocks  at  man's  door  and  waits  for  the 
will  to  open  the  door.  I  am  suspicious  of  Spiritism, 
Mesmerism,  Christian  Science,  or  any  other  thing 
that  asks  me  to  be  passive  and  receptive  and  surren- 
der my  will  at  the  beginning  of  the  investigation. 
God  does  not  ask  that.  After  the  investigation  is 
ended  and  truth  perceived,  then  the  surrender. 
Even  then,  though  we  pray  "Thy  will  be  done,"  it  is 
in  the  sense  that  our  wills,  having  perceived  truth. 


Man's  Free  Agency  475 

may  be  thereby  intelligently  in  exact  accord  with  his 
will.    Tennyson  has  the  idea  in  Memoriam: 

"Our  wills  are  ours,  we  know  not  how, 
Our  wills  are  ours,  to  make  them  Thine." 

"Behold  I  stand  at  the  door  and  knock" — Lord 
Jesus,  you  declared  that  all  power  was  given  into 
your  hands,  both  in  heaven  and  on  earth,  yet  you 
wait  at  my  frail  door  and  respect  the  sanctity  of 
my  personality!  Why  do  you  not  force  my  door 
and  enter  to  take  possession?  Because  "The  Lord 
God  gave  unto  man,  that  he  should  act  for  himself." 

Young  people,  to-night,  and  each  Sunday  night 
during  these  meetings,  Jesus  knocks  at  your  door. 
If  you  have  not  already  opened  to  him,  why  not  open 
your  door  and  grasp  his  hand?  It  is  the  truest, 
strongest  hand  ever  offered  you  in  friendship. 


